


In the Spider's Grotto

by PinkBellPepper



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Captive, Cocoon, Demon, F/M, Molestation, Rape, Silk - Freeform, Trapped, Webbing, daemon, dildo, noncon, slave - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-22
Updated: 2020-01-30
Packaged: 2021-02-24 23:41:30
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 13
Words: 24,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22366438
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PinkBellPepper/pseuds/PinkBellPepper
Summary: After being trapped deep below an icy grotto, Prompto becomes a sexual plaything for a sadistic Arachne.
Relationships: Prompto Argentum/Arachne
Comments: 9
Kudos: 38





	1. Chapter 1

Prompto gasped as he came up for air. Everything burned like fire, despite his body sliding up from icy waters and onto the broken sheet of ice. His lungs felt ready to pop. He'd fallen through the ice after slipping off a ledge....

He rolled onto his back, trying to regain his memory. He and the others had just witnessed Noctis get another arm. They were attacked and tried to reach the exit, but then Prompto's footing slipped and he was tossed below. He recalled the skip of his heart, calling out to the prince, and sliding backwards as demons laughed at his demise. He watched Gladio grab Noctis by the arm, then hit the ice. 

Stiffly, Prompto hefted himself fully out of the water and collapsed into a heap on the snowy embankment. The drafty caves left him beyond the point of shivering. The gunman closed his eyes, sure he'd pass away the moment he fell asleep. But something started to probe at his back and he became alarmed. His tried to move his head to get a look at the creature, but was suddenly scooped by the sharp cinch of giant spider legs. He screamed weakly as he was pushed into human arms, and up into a solid body of chilled flesh. 

"Well, look what those bothersome humans left me," a woman's voice called. It was deep and sharp, like a demon's would be.

Pale breasts rolled up onto Prompto's chest, pressing up to his face as he tried to turn himself away from them. His legs tried to kick out, but all he could manage was a pathetic attempt at a foothold. The hands wrapped around his body kept him there as her huge arachnid lower half began to make its way deeper into the grotto. The Arachne hummed to herself as she moved. Prompto could only listen it as his panic grew. When a hand loosened to run through his wet hair, his panic skyrocketed. He tried to escape again, this time with an extra burst of adrenaline.

"Coming to? Good," the Arachne let his drop and he fell right into her front spider legs. He was tucked under her body, immobile and unable to do anything but stare at the floor.

"Please, let me go," Prompto tried to beg, feeling humiliated even as he said it.

"And lose a perfectly good dildo?" she asked with a laugh.

Prompto's whole face felt like it could have turned red, had he enough blood to spare under the skin. 

"What? What the fuck-let me go! I'm not your fucking toy, lady!!" 

Her legs tightened.

"Too bad it was only one cock. Those other humans looked just as delectable. But you'll do, won't you, my cunt-slave."

Her legs tightened again. Prompto gasped. He struggled a moment before what little strength he had left was gone. He went limp and was carried off into the spider's lair. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> author here - I want to continue this fic (make it a few more chapters long), but am short on ideas. If you have any idea (kinky or plot-oriented), leave a comment and I'll try writing it.

The web was strong. Too strong to do anything but wiggle pathetically as the huge arachne climbed up the wall where Prompto had been mounted like a trophy. His face had fully turned red now that he'd been warmed up. 

  
The arachne had taken her time undressing him and rubbing his body against her chest. Her hands had tried to get his dick moving too, and Prompto had screamed bloody murder as he fought back against the unwanted fingers. 

  
The spider woman had frowned and taped him up to the wall instead. His legs and arms were bound, leaving his crotch exposed and his head pinned to the web. Her finger splayed along his exposed dick, though it was still flaccid. 

  
"I thought you might pass before morning, but you're stronger than you look. For a human. I'm going to have such fun with you."

  
Everything in Prompto was screaming for him to escape. A sort of wild terror filled him as soon as his privates were touched. He thrashed against the web but it only trembled slightly under his weight. The arachne laughed and grabbed a handful of her web. Blue sparks flew from her limbs and ran along the web and over Prompto's body. 

  
"Gahhh!" He gasped in pain, slumping forward when the spider's hand withdrew. 

  
"You can stay here while I fetch myself something to eat. Then..." she smiled, fangs protruding as she cupped Prompto's face. His eyes flicked upward, bloodshot and tired but as wide a saucers. "Then I'll have a bit more stamina to test you out." 

She left him hanging from the wall, in a small section of the cave with nothing to do but hang like a piece of meat. 

_It's okay, Prom, you got this,_ he told himself. _The big scary spider just wants to fuck you... Oh Ifrit, the giant SPIDER LADY WANTS TO FUCK ME!_

He grunted as he tried to free one of his arms. His fingers were glued together in fists at his side, and he desperately tried to wretch them open to draw his gun from the armiger. Trying so was infuriating, and he had to give up with a near-sob as the helplessness dawned on him. 

The spider lady really was going to fuck him, and Prompto could only wait in the dark until it happened. 

He fell asleep. Prompto wasn't sure how he even managed it, but his neck was sure going to complain. He woke to being taken from the web, the arachne's human hands sliding along his sides and plucking him like an apple from a tree. He groaned as his tired, stiff body was jostled and saw the arachne grinning through the dark. His eyes closed again in exhaustion, and he dreamed fleetingly of Noctis warping in and striking the spider through with a glittering lance. But no. His daydreams became difficult to hold onto as the arachne laid him down on his back and sidled her huge, spider underside over his bottom half. 

Prompto made an attempt to scoot away. A strong grip grabbed his shoulders and the arachne pressed her heavy weight into his body. She ground against him once, and a breathy moan escaped her lips. His flaccid cock ached as she tried to stimulate it with her underside. Then something wet and warm and soft slid over his shaft. Prompto thought he was going to start crying. 

"Please, please, wait-! I- I don't-"

"A virgin, then?" the arachne's smile stretched even wider. "How cute. I'll make you're first time hard to forget, little slave."

Her opening slid back down his shaft and up again. The friction leave a pleasant buzz in his stomach. Prompto couldn't help but curl his toes as the feeling grew hotter, the arachne panting above him in time with her thrusting body. Her legs were tucked on either side of them, lifting up Prompto's backside and pinning him closer to her. Pain mixed with the pleasure. Her sharp, pincer like limbs dug into the web and against his skin. Her grip left him struggling for breath, and he let out a moan he was unable to hide. The cave no longer felt as cold anymore. His face felt so fucking hot, it might explode. 

"Stop, please- it's too much!" Prompto whined. 

He turned his head, and shoved his cheek into the cold stone ground. A hand gripped his chin and shoved it back upward. The arachne slid back a little and bent low enough to press her human half across the gunman. Her breasts pooled over his chest and she rested her head in her hands, caging his head in with her elbows.   
Her body thrust once, and Prompto groaned as his dick throbbed and hardened. 

"Look at my cunt-slave, already so flustered by my beauty. Is that what you like, being pinned under me and moaning like a whore. So cute." She pinched his cheek, leaving a red mark over his freckles. 

Her opening slid back down his shaft and up again. The friction leave a pleasant buzz in his stomach. Prompto couldn't help but curl his toes as the feeling grew hotter, the arachne panting above him in time with her thrusting body. Her legs were tucked on either side of them, lifting up Prompto's backside and pinning him closer to her. Pain mixed with the pleasure. Her sharp, pincer like limbs dug into the web and against his skin. Her grip left him struggling for breath, and he let out a moan he was unable to hide. The cave no longer felt as cold anymore. His face felt so fucking hot, it might explode. 

"I was going to get off and then eat you... but I think I wouldn't mind a fuck toy like you. At least for a while."

Her thrusting picked up pace. Her lips swooped down the capture Prompto's and she sucked greedily at his bottom lip. A quick bite left Prompto with a bloody chin and she lapped it up. 

"You taste so good," the archane said, lifting herself up. "I wonder if you feel even better."

Her hands found his dick. It was half-hard and her touch felt like a hot iron. Fingers worked their way up and down, trailing each vein and exploring the shape of his head. She worked at it, making Prompto whine and squirm under her ministrations. When it was fully erect, she pulled back to examine her handiwork. 

"Not very big," she mused. "But bigger than I've had before." 

Her spider legs dug under Prompto's back. He was lifted back to her bottom, and this time, he felt his dick head slid through the folds of her vagina. She felt incredibly aroused, and the wet heat almost unraveled Prompto right then and there. Shame filled him as she slowly pushed him in. 

"Wait! No!" His head fell back into the stone with a whack! as he tried to escape. 

He couldn't believe it. He couldn't understand why he had to lose his virginity to a fucking monster! He had just woken up this morning, eating delicious eggs made by Ignis, joking about how he'd work up the nerve to talk to Cindy when they returned to Hammer Head. 

More shame flooded him at the thought of the mechanic. He tried not to picture her smile, or eyes, or cleavage. How could he be thinking of her at a time like this? Somehow, he was the one to feel like a perv, despite being taken advantage of. 

"Fuck you!" He found himself screaming. Tears escaped his eyes as he buried his shame and fear under anger. "Fuck you, bitch!"

  
Everything halted. A heavy sense of forbidding caked the caves, and Prompto found the arachne glaring at him with a seriously pissed expression. All his anger evaporated. He felt like a child, found by a parent with his hand in the cookie jar. 

"I-I-I," He stumbled to find the right things to say, and only ended up choking on his own words.

The Arachne grabbed him by the throat and lifted herself to her full height. Prompto started to gasp for breath, struggling at she hefted him up onto his feet and made him stand. She spun him around and pushed him up against the wall. Webbing was plastered onto his back and sides, effectively gluing him there. His hot breath fell over the stone in terrified puffs. He couldn't turn around to look at the daemon as she went about the cave. Her legs pitter-pattered across the ground. 

"What are you doing!?" Prompto asked. His voice was shaky and small. "What are you going to do? Please, I'm sorry- I was scared. I- I didn't mean it!" 

She didn't answer. Prompto didn't keep up his begging. He stared at the wall, scared shitless and flinching at every little noise. When it became too much, he closed his eyes and tucked his chin to his chest. He started to whisper words to encouragement, and thought about his bros out on the road. He choked on a sob. Okay, wrong thing to think about. That just made him feel more like shit.

But he couldn't stop.

His hand twitched. If he could just summon the gun, then Noct would feel him. Noct would know he was still alive and, then Ignis would spin the car around and Gladio would kill this bitch with his huge, freaking broadsword. 

Holy fuck, he wished he could stop daydreaming about his rescue. Snapping back into reality made him feel sick. 

"A naughty toy doesn't use their mouth for anything but licking my cunt," the Arachne suddenly said. 

Prompto gasped as a strip of strong web was jerked over his mouth. It slid in between his teeth, effectively gagging him. The Arachne tied the back off, leaving him hanging again. Something cold pressed into the small of his back. Prompto shuddered and tried to look. The cold thing moved lower. It settled just above the slope of his ass, before falling in between his cheeks. He thrashed and screamed. the Arachne held the object still and pet at his back. His struggle lasted only a few minutes before his body slumped. 

"I'll train you well," the arachne said. "You may fight now, but soon you'll be begging your Mistress to fuck you into the wall. All humans eventually do." A hand fell to his throat, wrapping and squeezing the tense tissue there.

"Human men especially. Such weak creatures. All that blood goes rushing down here," the hand fell between body and wall, groping his crotch. Her grip was hard and hurt, deflating is already softening dick even more. 

"You'll learn that being a good slave means less pain," she finished with a squeeze and withdrew. Only that cold object remained pressed against his ass. It pressed harder, and something pointy and small slipped into his asshole. Rough friction left the area seizing with a burning sensation. Prompto clenched, gasping on his own breath. 

"Gahh!" 

The object was shoved in deeper. The tip - no bigger than a pinky finger - widened as it entered. His innards froze up and Prompto freely began to cry through his gag. The arachne laughed and peppered kisses on the back of his neck. Her weight pressed into him, sliding forward with the object. It kept on stretching to the point of unbearable. Then it was pulled out and shoved back in. He heard the Arachne spit and a cold wetness collected around the rim of his ass. It went in just a bit smoother, but the burning remained as fresh as ever. 

In and out. In and out. The makeshift dildo kept on going. Wetness leaked down his thighs and a puddle began to collect around his near-blue toes. Prompto realized she was fucking him with an icicle. The realization made the burning that much more unbearable, the icy reaching deep inside and freezing him up. He closed his eyes as the assault continued. 

Without meaning to, his thoughts went back to the Regalia leaving black marks on the road as it spun around. Ignis would make a dangerous U-turn, disregarding the law and going well over the speed limit. Gladio would be holding on for dear life, car sick but already gearing up for a fight. Noct would jump out the car as soon as it stopped, warping into the grotto with little hesitation.

And yet, as the icicle turned to water and pink rivulets dribbled down his legs, the daemon still used him. 

Help wasn't coming. 


	3. Chapter 3

Noctis sat on the steps of the hotel. Lestallum was hot, as usual, and he was starting to get fed up with his sweat soaked shirts. Not that he really cared that much, but Ignis would make a big deal about hygiene and force him into a long overdue shower. 

His mood was obvious. As obvious as it always was, scrawled across his downtrodden face. He didn't want to hunt, didn't want to find the arms, and he especially didn't want to change his clothes. He just wanted to sit here and be sad. Ignis and Gladio had given him the morning to mope, but approached midday to find their prince still in the same spot. They exchanged glances, newly bought supplies in hand, and met him at the hotel steps. 

"Hey Noct," Gladio began. "Come on, you and I are gonna go train on the sand for a bit. Get your muscles stretched a bit."

"And I'm going to cook lunch," Ignis added, already heading up the steps. He paused beside his charge. "I also purchased ingredients for memory cake."

Noctis didn't answer either of them. He just kept staring off into space, chin hidden behind his arms and knees. 

"Noct." Gladio said. "I'm not asking. You don't have to pull yourself out of your mood, but you are going-"

"It's not a mood," Noctis hissed, shooting his shield a sharp glare. "Prompto is probably still alive in that cave, and you guys are fucking acting like he's already dead."

Ignis suppressed a sigh and dropped the grocery bags. "He fell through an ice sheet into a current, Noctis. No one can survive that. Even if we had went back, you could barely summon a dagger."

"And there it is!" Noctis said, standing up. "You left him because of me. You gave up on him because you valued me more than you did him!"

"That's not fair," Ignis snapped. "Prompto didn't have a prophecy to uphold."

"Stop talking about him like he's not alive!" Noctis started to storm off, shouldering past Gladio who went to take him by the shoulder. 

Ignis stopped him from touching the other, and instead asked, "Where are you going?"

"Out."

The prince left down the bricked alley way and disappeared among the food vendors. Ignis, rather than go make lunch, sat on the steps among his groceries. Gladio did the same with a long, drawn out sigh. 

"Do you think..." Gladio began. 

"Honestly, I've been struggling to not think about it. Yes, Prompto was probably alive for a while longer, but Noct couldn't fight and we had no ethers left. The waters in that cave went down too many different routes, and we wouldn't have found him in time. Should he have even escaped from under the ice... We did the right thing. Right?"

Gladio was silent for a moment. "Let's not beat ourselves up. Not right now. We still have an empire trying to kill us."

"I feel like Noctis thinks we don't care."

"Let him. You know how he copes. But we can only afford so much time to grieve. We still need to return Hammer Head and make car repairs... and Cor is still expecting to hear from us."

"Right. We have to tell him..."

Gladio and him fell into a lapse of silence. Ignis made to say something, but paused and wandered into the hotel to reluctantly start lunch. Gladio waited on the steps a while longer before heading down the beach. Neither of them wanted to be idle for long. 

* * *

Prompto had been waiting for what felt like ages. He had lost track of time, of how times his nose had unbearably itched, or how many panic attacks he'd worked himself through. After humiliating him with the icicle, the arachne had wrapped Prompto in several layers of her webbing. From his toes to his head, she bound him as tightly as her silk could be pulled taut. His nose and face was covered. He could only breath shallow through the material, and it left him on the verge of never getting enough air to fill his lungs. 

The arachne had propped him to the ceiling and left him there. 

He was hot in the cocoon. It wore off the worst of the chill and actually started to make him sweat. The claustrophobia alone was enough to make him scream himself hoarse. His voice now raw as it echoed, though muffled, around the small cavern. The Arachne would return periodically. Prompto would hear her from below, and feel her vibrations as she plucked along the web. Once, he thought he heard screaming farther down the caverns. Twenty minutes later, he heard bones and meat being crunched on directly below him. 

If the aranchne jumped on the web and got too close, he'd pray for his death to be quick and near-painless. But she'd only laugh at his struggling form and leave him alone. The entire situation left the gunman a mess. He didn't know if he could physically bear being in the cave anymore; being teased by this daemon. 

Prompto hung like that for two whole days. On the morning of the third, the arachne finally clambered up the web and over the top of him. Prompto wasn't sure if he felt a new spike of fresh terror, or just a burst of the constant dull fear he felt on the daily. The Arachne laughed at him, plopping her large torso across his body and caressed his bound face.

"Sorry for being gone so long, my little cunt-slave," she said. Her fingers trailed down to his chest, fingers resting over the thrum of his rapidly beating heart. "You and your friends caused such a commotion, I've had troublesome imps crossing through my tunnels. At least now I won't have to leave for food for a while."

Her hands gripped his waist and pulled at the webbing there. Prompto tried to shake his head, to plead. His head wouldn't move and his lips were sealed shut. He could only make muffled whines as his flaccid cock was tore loose to the drafty cold. It was such a stark temperature change from the rest of his body, he couldn't help the high-keened whine that escaped him. It made the Arachne laugh again as she pinched and tugged at his balls. 

"I think I like that sound. How cute," she said. "I wonder what other sounds I can get you to make?"

He was torn from her web and cradled to her large breasts as she wandered down the wall. On his back on the floor, she started to play with his cock. Her touch, after so long without stimulation - or movement - of any kind, made his numb body start to tingle. And oh Shiva, how he hated the desperate throbbing ache that started to build down there. She pumped him. And that ache grew into something like scratching an unreachable itch. He squirmed, hating the feeling but wishing it wouldn't stop. 

'This is fucked up,' Prompto thought, mind running a mile a minute. 'Oh fuck, why does it feel so good?!'

As if the Arachne could read his thoughts, the voluptuous daemon, stopped pumping and removed the warm flesh of her palm. Her fingers found a layer of snow and dusted it against his hardened cock. It twitched, the hot red flesh burning horribly as Prompto struggled in vain. More snow was gathered up - a fistful that she used to coat his dick and keep jerking. Prompto didn't know what to do. He couldn't move, could barely breath, and the pain down there was about to reach unbearable limits. He tried to beg again, and his voice refused to come out coherent. 

"I'll stop when you come," the Arachne told him sweetly.

Prompto moaned in despair, and in return, more snow was added. What melted trickled down his abdomen and soaked into the webbing. It began to itch where the silk dampened. Again he tried to beg her to stop. She kept pumping him, laughing and cooing over how pathetic he was. Prompto never was able to cum. She beat him off for over an hour, finally complaining that her arm was tired and she was disappointed in his performance. When she let go, Prompto's whole body felt like it slumped into a shivering pile of goo. 

"Well, I suppose we can work on that," the Arachne sighed, put off. "I want you to cum the moment I touch you. I want you to whine at the mere sound of my voice, and beg to enter me like an eager slave."

Prompto didn't beg this time, if only to keep her from hearing the sounds she loved so much. The Arachne chuckled at the display and removed the snow from his half-hard dick. She lifted herself up by her giant legs, and descenede with a low moan as the member slid into her vagina. She swung her hips and rocked down into him. Prompto ground his teeth together and bore through it. 

And all he could do, was ignore the reality of his situation: he'd become just some fuck-toy.


	4. Chapter 4

The Arachne fucked Prompto too many times to count. He was fucked on the wall, on the ceiling, upside down and rode in too many positions to keep track of. The arachne often violated him with icicles if he didn't cum quick enough, or have a reaction that amused the daemon woman. All the while, she kept him wrapped up in his cocoon, only taking webbing from his face and crotch when her mood allowed it. 

"How does that feel, cunt-slave?" the Arachne asked. She was holding Prompto by the waist, using him like a blow up sex toy as she rubbed him up and down her body. "You're getting so responsive for me, so hard so fast." Her rutting got faster, pulling Prompto in and making him whine as pleasure built in his gut. 

He hated the truth in her words. Every time she got near him, he'd get hard. Her clicking feet trailing along the walls? Hard on. Her laugh as she stomped on his balls and made him choke on his screams? Hard on. Her hands playing with his nipples over the webbing? Hard on. For Ifrit's sake, the pleasure was worse than the pain! And it was getting hard to tell the two apart from one another. 

He was going to cum soon. He felt it approaching, and the Arachne (who had begun to learn his body as much as Prompto knew hers) urged him on. 

"Go ahead, little slave. Go ahead and cum for me. You like being my fuck-toy, don't you? It gets you off, knowing your only purpose is to make me satisfied."

He didn't try to shake his head. Didn't try to deny it. Just bore through it, and came with a weak gasp. The orgasms didn't even feel good. Just hollow. A chore that left his numb body shivering and floaty. The Arachne kept moving though, picking up her pace to a too-rough degree. She force dhim up against the wall, fucking his softening dick until it slipped out. The Arachne grinned sharply and grabbed at it, massaging. 

"I'm not done yet. Get hard for me again."

He couldn't. Fuck, Prompto couldn't even think straight. The overstimulation was making him loose what little breath he already had. Tears wetted the silk around his eyes. The daemon tore the webbing from his face to lick up the tears. She left some webbing sealing his mouth. 

"Is my slave disobeying orders?" The Arachne asked, knowing full well that he couldn't get hard right now. "If so, a punishment is in order."

More tears fell. She lapped them up, continued pumping and prodding. When Prompto thought he was going to pass out, she let go with a dissatisfied hum. 

"If you can't get hard, then I'll just have to wait."

The Arachne grabbed Prompto, sweeping him up with her to the cave's roof. Taking his dick and balls, she wrapped them in a tight knot of webbing and stuck the other end of the silk to the ceiling. He started to beg again, but she simply let him go and Prompto found himself swinging by his junk. He screamed. Holy fuck, it hurt. It hurt, it hurt, it hurt! The Arachne took great joy in his misery and gave him a shove so he swung from side to side. He screamed more through the webbing, the screams echoing down the rest of the winding tunnels. 

"Think about this next time you disobey," she whispered in his ear, licked a stripe against the shell, and left the cave. 

Prompto heaved with sobs as he hung there. The sensitive flesh of his cock and balls ached and stretched. It felt like they would snap off from his body, as tired and sore as they already were from the daemon's constant fucking. 

But he didn't hang there for long. They was a loud tearing noise that terrified Prompto. But through the haze of pain, he realized that it wasn't his flesh. It was the webbing. His neck craned to look and he noted how the left side of the silk had torn a little. Already knowing that it would hurt like a bitch, he started to try and swing his hips. The momentum picked up little by little, and the tear grew. As did the pain. Prompto bared through it, and watched intently as the tear suddenly snapped across the width of the band. His body plummeted to the stone below. 

When he woke up, his hearing was nothing but a string of white noise. The cave's monotonous walls spiraled over him. Something sharp was digging into his arm. He shifted and pain tore there. His eyes caught sight of red. 

Blood... that's bad, he thought. But there wasn't much grief behind it. If he died here, before the Arachne found him, then... then it was okay. 

He closed his eyes. Opened them. He was so tired. Wetness was trailing down the back of his neck, and he guessed he got a wound of some kind on the noggin. But then his arm twitched, the wounded one, and the tightness of his webbing loosened. Shock spiked through his body. He tried it again, and the web loosened some more. His eyes flickered down to watch the silk open up around his sweat-soaked from. A solid, sharp object was digging into his side. 

A rock. A sharp rock that had cut both him and the webbing. A way out. 

***

They had left Lestallum a week ago. By now, the trio had fallen into a familiar pattern (minus on gun slinger) and were steadily on their way to collecting all the royal arms. Cor had been sad to hear of Prom's fate, and decided that he would join Noctis on his quest. He had been aiding the hunters, but decided that helping the prince was more important. Cor's presence helped get Noct into a better mindset. One that could focus solely on his mission.

Ignis didn't like it. Had he the chance, he would go back in time and pursue Prompto himself. The gunman's absence had soured Noctis greatly, and the prince no longer played on his phone or complained about his food. He chose training over naps, something that mad even Gladio a little worried. He did everything like a solider, like Cor was doing, to keep himself moving. It was despairing to see the young man turn to a shell of his former self in just nine painfully long days.

No one brought up Prompto Argentum during that time. Ignis had thought about preparing some kind of funeral for him, then decided against it. Noctis would be upset if he even brought it up. He'd been thinking of it since this morning, and even as he drove the regalia off to the side of the road. They were heading for Thommels Glade on foot. Cor lead them down off the asphalt and to the foliage below. No one said anything. Not much was said between them in the way of idle conversation anymore. 

"After this," Ignis said lowly, falling back to Gladio's side, "I think we need to seriously discuss... the issue."

"If Noct hears you calling it 'the issue', he'll be pissed."

"He'll be upset no matter what. And I don't mean it like that, damn it." Ignis huffed, reigning his a frustration that had been increasingly hard to control. "We only have a few arms left to find, and then, it'll be a lot of waiting to get to Altissia."

"And lots of free time we'll have to fill," Gladio agreed, eyes always straight ahead. "Don't think I haven't been thinking about it either, Iggy. It's been hard for everyone, but with the war, death is just a natural part of it we need to work through. It's not easy. Not for you. Not for me. I-" Gladio paused. But his face hardened and he gave his head a shake. "All I'm saying is, Prompto won't be the last death."

"Please don't say such things."

"War is death, Iggy."

Their conversation might have petered off, or lead to something more, but Ignis was distracted by Cor's shout and the roar of an angry coeurl. A few angry roars, actually. Ignis summoned his daggers in a flash of blue. The sparks of electricity were already in the air. Noctis' form flickered in and out of existence above them. Ignis dodged a coeurl as it pounced after the prince, instead spinning to swipe at the new target. A huge lance spiraled into its side like a bullet, spearing through and sending its powerful body flying. The big cat disappeared into the thick underbrush. Noct followed the beast to finish it off, just as another attacked Ignis from the other side of the clearing. They were a lot and they were fierce. 

Gladio's back pressed to Ignis' and two fended off the creatures. 

***

Fuck, fuck, fuck. 

Prompto's limbs were on literal fire. There was no other way to describe the feeling. The deep, drilling pain of being immobile for so long left him stiffly laying in a cold sheet of ice and snow, unable to even roll over on his side. His arm, outstretched towards the nearby exit, twitched. His fingers uncurled painfully from their fist and he was forced to pause halfway through. 

"Fuck, oh fuck," Prompto gasped, on the verge of tears as he laid out across the stone. 

He had managed to shimmy himself out of most of the webbing. The sweat of his confinement had helped keep it from sticking too much to his skin, but bits and pieces still clung to him like fresh flurries from a snow storm. But movement was excruciating. And time was limited. His had managed to crawl halfway to across the cave, but had to stop. A long trail of red marked his path, a wound on his side and his head leaving the marks. 

Prompto rested a moment. It felt like his whole life had taken a turn; had become nothing but pain. He hadn't even been able to proerply open his hands yet, his fingers stuck in their curled position. He took his rest to lay a hand before his face and slowly - so slowly - try to open it. His fingers went numb, to tingly, to more pain. And yet, Prompto kept at it, finally laying a flat palm to the stone. He curled them again, and uncurled them. A familiar, simple action that spared the faintest bit of blue, glimmering shards along his palms. 

"Fuck, come on!" Prompto begged. Then his fingers opened a bit quicker, and through his haze, a flooding a relief that made him want to cry some more. His gun appeared. The heavy weight slid into his grip and he held it shakily, weakly. He flickered it out of existence, then brought it back. Again. Again. Again. 

"I'm here, I'm here, I'm here," Prompto uttered the mantra under his breath. 

"I'm here, Noct. I'm alive."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> owo, what's this? next chapter ---> they reunite :D


	5. Chapter 5

The coerul screamed as it was sliced down by Noct's large blade. He shoved it away with a swing of the sword, lifting its body off the ground and sending it flying into the brush. He immediately spun to strike another pouncing cat as it leapt for his back. He heard the dying cry of another farther away, and heard footsteps running up behind him. 

"Noctis," Ignis called, worry tight in his voice. "I think that was the last of them. Are you hurt?"

"No, no. I'm fine." He sent his blade to his armiger. "Where did Cor run off to?"

"Right here," Cor called. He stomped into the tiny clearing, blood coating his chest but without bodily scratches. "The tomb shouldn't be much farther, so long as there's no more of those damn cats to bother us."

Noctis barely heard the man. He jumped like another coerul had jumped at him, and looked around wildly. Everyone's attetnuon snapped to the prince, who jumped again and spun around with wide eyes as if looking for something. 

"Noctis? Are you quite alright?" Ignis reached out, but Noctis pulled back and placed a hand to his chest. 

When he looked up, there were tears in his eyes. 

"I- I- he's summoning his gun right now!" Noctis stammered. "He's summoning it over and over!"

Ignis' heart skipped a beat. He shared a shocked glance with Gladio. 

"Slow down, kid, are you talking about Prompto?" Cor asked, a softness to his otherwise hard voice. 

"He stopped!" Noctis panicked, hands gripping at the front of his shirt as if to will the feelings back. "I felt him- I- he's alive! We have to go! We have to get him!" 

"Are you sure it was him?" Gladio asked. "Noct, it's been over a week-"

Noctis spared Gladio a single, furious glance, and warped away towards the regalia. Cor and the others exchanged more shocked looks. Then Ignis realized he was standing there like a useless statue, and took off running after his charge. He was grabbing at the keys in his pocket, readying them as he ran from the underbrush. Cor and Galdio were quickly on his tail. 

'If you're really alive, Prompto,' Ignis thought, 'We'll find you.'

***

Prompto was naked, cold, and in a great deal of pain. He had managed to escape the Arachne's personal tunnels, it seemed. He just followed the webbing until it tapered out to gray stone and blue ice. The sound of a running current filled the hollowed tunnels, and put Prom's teeth on edge. He half-limped, half-crawled most of the way, hiding behind stones or around corners when he heard daemons approaching. It was mostly imps, and they were never very aware of anything but what was directly in front of him. 

"Gah!" He screamed, tumbling onto a pained back when he came across a scattering of limbs. Imp limbs, torn from their bodies and left in scattered, half-eaten pieces. Prompto limped around them, crawling up the slope to what looked like another familiar cave. One he'd passed through when he was with Noct and the others. He tried not to think about the dead daemons. The Arachne ate them, he knew, so he paused often to listen for her familiar scuttling. 

The only other thing he was worried about were those huge, punching goblins. They were nearer the entrance, when his party had first entered the grotto. They'd surely kill him if he were caught. Well, when he found them, he found them dead and bloody. The large creatures had been killed by something much larger. They had been dead for a while, and their black blood was caked frozen around them, corpses chilled like meat in a fridge. Puncture marks, about the same size as the Arachne's. 

The entrance sat past their bodies, a flood of blinding light that was too painful to even look at. Prompto limped up towards it, reaching out as if he could touch the sunlight. A warm breeze swept past him, urging him forward, and tears streamed down his face. For the first time in a long time, Prom smiled as his bare feet trudged over the barrier from underground to above. And he didn't stop moving, faster and faster through the pain, and away from his tormentor. 

***

Gladio didn't get his hopes up. He didn't believe Noctis felt Prompto. Couldn't have. It'd been too long. The kid had fallen into an icy cold current, and was swept deep into the bowels of dameon infested caves. 

And they had left them. He had left him. Had grabbed Noctis by the arm as the prince struggled to go back, and told Ignis that if they didn't leave now, all of them would perish. Guilt was a constant thing, sitting in his chest. It was overshadowed by more intrusive thoughts, arguing against Prompto only now using his weapon. Why after nine days? Why wait? He tried not get his hopes up as the regalia drove well over the speed limit, Iggy taking it down the plains towards the grotto. 

__Noctis' ability to feel their summoning didn't give him a location. If Prom had survived, Gladio didn't think he'd still be at the grotto. But they had nowhere else to go. Cor was quiet most of the way. Didn't say anything for or against - just watched the back of Noct's head with narrowed eyes, deep in his own thoughts. When he caught Gladio staring, Cor uncrossed his arms and offered his a thin smile._ _

__"Nothing's impossible," he said, as if having read Gladio's mind._ _

__Gladio sat back, and looked out the wind. He tried to believe that as they went._ _

__***_ _

__Prompto stumbled down the road, keeping a ways off from passing cars. He wasn't sure why. Maybe embarrassment. He was stark naked save for the pieces of webbing. Those, he had tore off in a panic after the high of escaping died. It left him with chunks of his skin missing and blood running down his body. He had found more the red (days old) caked between his thighs. It hurt to walk. His ass and spine wracked with pain, and his limbs still had yet to get use to movement. He was stiff and falling over and passing away sounded almost as good as eating something. He was starved. The Arachne had only ever tried to force imp meat down his throat. He had always refused, and lost a lot of weight as a result. He was sure that the next time she planned on making him eat, Prompto would have opened his mouth._ _

__He cried with relief that he'd held out. Promised himself that he'd find a burger - fucking hunt one in the wild if he had to. He smiled through his tears. But a sob escaped through as an ache lanced up his backside._ _

__"Stupid bitch! Stupid, fucking spider bitch!" He fell against a tree, hiding himself behind it and dropping his head in his hands. He was trying to reach Lestallum. He would find Noctis and the others. Had to. Noct must have already felt him summon his gun, and wondered if that had been a mistake. Would they be in Lestallum? Would they go back to the grotto? Or would Noct think it had been a fluke? Should he summon it again? He shook his head, looking up to find the sun was beginning to set._ _

Fuck. That meant more daemons. But as the light faded, and darkness fell, Prompto saw a distant glow above the tree tops. Artifical light - an outpost of some kind. He couldn't recall nearby towns or settlements, but was grateful he was at least near humans. Stumbling from the trunk, he forced his legs to start jogging towards the light. Towards the humans. When he reached it, the sun had fallen completely. He was at a fence barricaded a concrete slab. A convince store was buzzing softly in the quiet, a series of neon and flashing lights. Prompto, feeling like a wild animal, scuttled through the undergrowth. He reached the fence line, and paused just inside the line of trees. 

He was naked. He felt embarrassed. It took everything he had to step out into the open, under the lights, hiding his shame with one hand as he made a beeline for the gate. The parking lot was empty and no one was hanging around, making it easier to head up to the sliding glass doors. When he entered he was greeted by a rather shocked employee at the register. 

"Woah!" he said, looking up from his magazine, already halfway around the counter. "You okay, buddy?" 

Prompto held himself against the doorframe, trying to hide himself a bit. "I'm sorry - I- I'm not trying to be a perv! A daemon attacked me and I need help."

"Hey, man, come on in, let me get you some clothes. Damn. You looked beat to hell, what happened?" 

The clerk went to the few racks on the other side of the store, quickly grabbing an oversized jacket off the hangers. Prompto came too him nervously, accepting the jacket with a thank you. 

"I might have some extra pants in the back. Man, you need a ride to a doctor? I'll close up here, I'll take you myself."

Prompto was flooded with relief at the kind stranger, quickly wrapping himself up but shaking his head. He didn't want to be examined. No. He just wanted to get to Lestallum, but... not tonight. He wasn't sure if he could face his friends. He needed rest, he wanted to eat and sleep in something other than web. Before he knew it, he was crying in front of the stranger, wiping furiously at his face. 

"You alright?" The clerk flustered nervously. 

"I'm sorry, I'm fine. I'm just relieved is all. I'm okay on the doctor, but... but I need to get to Lestallum and I have no way. I hate to ask, but, could you spare some gil? I could rent a chocobo-"

"Hey, buddy," the clerk interrupted. "Go ahead and sleep in the closet if you want, and I'll drive you to Lestallum after my shift? I mean, if you're okay not being patched up. You seriously don't look well. I have a first aid kit you could use."

Prompto nodded, and took the man's offer. He thanked him numerous times as he was given privacy in the backroom storage, where the man had lad out some jackets and flat carboard as a makeshift bed for the night. Prompto didn't bother to ask if he had a cellphone. He couldn't talk to Noct over the line like that. He'd have no idea what to say, and told himself to worry about it in the morning. He really didn't want to worry about it. 

He used the bathroom to clean up. The man wasn't kidding. He looked like he'd been in a brawl and lost. His face was spared from any visible trauma, but his chest and legs were covered in bruises and marks. Especially his thighs, left with lines of deep red rashes. He had dark circles under his eyes and had lost a lot of weight. Too much. His cheeks were sunken in and he could clearly see his ribs, whereas he'd been rather fit and trim beforehand. The clerk had left him some packaged foods, and he realized why. The man hadn't asked what happened. Prompto was grateful for that. 

He put on a shirt and two jackets. He made sure they were all loose. The pants too, and tied them off loosely at the belt. Then he ate half a twinkie before he felt a horrible pain in his gut. He put it aside despite his hunger and promised to try again later. Grabbing a jacket and rolling it under his head, Prompto fell asleep the moment he laid on his makeshift pillow. 

***

"Come on, Iggy! We need to get moving!" Noct whined. 

"We'll run out of gas a few miles before we reach walking distance," Ignis said sternly. "I'll try to be as quick as I can. Gladio, run inside and grab all the medical supplies they have. Use whatever gil you need to"

"I'll go with," Cor said, hopping out the side. "We'll be back in less than five."

The sky was dark, and they'd been driving for hours now. The grotto was close by. Close enough that Noctis was getting edgy and aggressive, and now pissed he had to wait longer. Ignis ignored him, and watched the meter fill up. He only got what he knew they needed and put the cap back on, getting in and turning on the engine. Noct seemed to appreciate his time management and bounced in the passenger seat.

"Gladio and Cor need to hurry their asses up," Noct muttered. 

***

Prompto woke up, thinking he heard Gladiolus' voice. He was in a storage closet, surrounded by jackets, and recalled his escape. He shook his head, not remembering the dream he had. 

And then he heard Gladio's voice again, followed by another familiar one. Cor. Prompto snapped up out of the fabrics. His legs nearly gave out under him. He was still tired as hell, and sleep sounded heavenly, but his feet drug him to the door to listen. It was Gladio, talking to the clerk. There was no fucking way. He gulped, pressed his hand to the door, and shoved it open. His heart pounded a mile a minute as he saw the Gladio's back and the wings of his black ink. Cor was beside him, a bag of supplies in their hands as they headed for the door. 

Prompto took a step forward and reached out. He opened his mouth, but cold fear stopped him dead. His backside throbbed. Shame coursed through his battered body and the words caught in his throat as the bell to the entrance rang and the men left. The clerk noticed him then, and asked if he was okay. Prompto shook his head. 

"Those were- those were my friends," he stammered, as if the clerk would know the answer to his internal dilemma. 

"What? I'll go catch them-" 

But Prompto was already running down the food aisles. The bell rung again and his bare feet stepped onto the rocky asphalt. He could see the regalia in all her shiny, black glory. She was pulling out of the gas station already, her tires making a loud whine as he saw Ignis turn out onto the road. 

"Wiat! No, wait!" 

An irrational fear took hold of Prompto. The same kind of terror he had felt trapped alone in that cocoon with nothing but his own heartbeat for company. He summoned his gun, and fired several shots into the air, the bullets soaring dangerously into the sky. The regalia came to a screeching halt, and Prompto de-summoned and re-summoned his gun several times, firing it into the air again. He heard the clerk shouting behind him, calling for him to calm down. But all Prompto saw was the red lights of the car as it jerked and reversed itself. 

A shimmering burst of blue fled from the car. It skipped across the parking lot and came to halt right in front of Prompto, enveloping him in a hug. Prompto froze, the tightness making his throat constrict and chest heave. But… but it was his prince. It was Noctis, and all he could do was hug him back and feel the waterworks start to come again. Yet, the gunman made himself stop. Made himself harden the way Gladio had when the city burned. How Iggy and Iris could be. He forced himself not to cry, but buried his face in Noct's neck. 

"I thought you were dead." 

Noct was sobbing. They fell down together on their knees, and Prom found himself clinging more desperately to the prince. He made the approaching tears stop. He wanted to be strong for Noct. Wanted to hold him and just pretend the last several days never happened. 

"I'm here, buddy," came Prom's watery reply. "Ha. C-can't get rid of me that easy."

He saw Gladio and Ignis and Cor paused behind them, watching with varying degrees of worry. Prom looked away from them. He felt naked again, and focused on the feel of the fabric on his back. 

"What happened?" Noctis finally asked. He pulled back, grabbing Prompto's shoulders. His face suddenly startled, as he really looked at the gunman for the first time. "Oh Shiva, Prom... Where have you been?"

Prompto realized something right then. He couldn't tell them. He couldn't make himself. And as he clung to Noct, he knew it was going to cause problems for both of them. He opened his mouth, just to tell them. To be honest and rip the band aid off. But it never came. Instead, he gave a half truth.

"The grotto," he began honestly. "I don't... I want to sleep in a real bed." He don't know why he said that. But the sentence have nearly broke with a watery voice he tried to hide. But Noctis didn't push any further. 

"Ignis, get the car ready!" He ordered, helping Prompto gently to his feet. "We're going to Lestallum. You're sleeping in fucking silk sheets tonight, Prompto."

The gunslinger laughed - an actual genuine laugh, and leaned into the prince. Yeah. He'd sleep in silk sheets, and deal with this all 'later.'

'Later,' he told himself. 'Later, later, later...'


	6. Chapter 6

Prompto was quiet the rest of the car ride to Lestallum. He kept dozing off against the door, Noct beside him worryingly asking if he needed anything. Prompto The prince then pulled a pillow from his armiger he used during fishing breaks, and Prompto accepted it gratefully. He was woken up when they reached the city. It was weird to walk around all the people again. He never thought he would. Never thought he'd walk through the warm, fancy halls of the hotel with huge rooms and ornate showers. 

Noctis had tried to get him to talk to him a few times. Prompto just said he wanted sleep. He could barely look the prince in the eyes, and blamed it on exhaustion. 

"Please, can we talk in the morning?" 

Noctis had given in with a reluctant nod, backing off and letting Prompto change and shower in piece. His bandages needed changing. His wounds were leaking. He spent most of the night cleaning between his legs though, not bothering to even remove the wrappings from his arms and legs. He cleaned his face and washed his hair; he tried to look presentable for tomorrow, so he'd have less to explain.

He had compleety stripped himself naked before going to sleep, finding the jackets suddenly too heavy. But then he felt strange being naked, didn't like feeling his skin against his own skin, and tried on one of the bath robes. He took it off, and decided that it - and the bed's sheets - felt too much like the slip of the Arachne's shining web. He slept in the daytime clothes Ignis had laid out in the bathroom for him, and slept on the laid out jackets over the top of the bed. 

He didn't recall falling asleep. Then Prompto woke up. There was nothing. No webs, no spiders, no waking ten feet from the ground blind and mute. 

He woke up in a numb sort of trance. He stared at the ceiling, at the sunglight creeping through the curtains, and wondered just how he was going to handle the day. He had no idea how to tell the guys the truth. He didn't want to, but couldn't find a decent enough lie to explain where he'd been. Why he'd not pulled out his gun sooner, and contacted them. He groaned and rolled up off a stiff back.

There was a knock at the door. It was hesitant. 

Yeah?" Prompto called after a moment. 

"Hey, just checking if you're up..." It was Noctis. He sounded small. Worried. "Are you hungry? Ignis is cooking breakfast for us."

"Let me change," Prompto called, already fully dressed. He didn't want to style his hair up like he usually did. Didn't want to shower even. He just wanted a moment to collect himself. "I'll be out in a sec!" 

"Okay, see you there." 

Prompto sat there for longer than a few moments. Then he stood, took a deep breath, and stepped out from the bedroom. He noted the slight limp in his gait. A steady thrumming of pain was sitting in his legs and backside, but he did well to hide it. He found himself creeping down the ornate hall to an open kitchen area. Cor and Gladio looked up from their coffee at the table. Ignis at the stove. Noct on the couch, sitting on the back like a crow waiting on a pole line. He jumped off the cushions when he saw Prompto. 

"Hey! How are you feeling?" he asked. 

"I'm fine," was the automatic response. "It, uh, it smells really good, Ignis."

"There will be plenty to eat," Ignis said. He turned, giving Prom a tense but sincere smile. "How are you feeling this morning?"

"Sleepy," Prompto said. "Still kinda tired."

"You can rest some more after breakfast," Gladio told him. He stood up, walking over to Prompto.

The gunman suddenly felt an insane need to flee, the giant towering over him and leaving a shadow across his face. A shadow coming over him, pinning him, holding him down-

"Prom?"

He blinked. Prompto had scrambled back out of the kitchen into the hallway, holding the doorframe as if his life depended on it. He was staring, wide-eyed at Gladio, unseeing. He didn't know what to say. Everyone was staring at him, worried. 

''We're only here to help," Cor was saying. He had been talking, for who knows how long. Prompto's ears felt hot. "We're you're friends, Prompto. You're safe."

No one asked the obvious: what the fuck was that. Prompto knew they were all wondering it. All thinking the along the same lines. Guilt flooded him. He couldn't hide it. He might of, had he been a few months younger. Had he not seen his home destroyed nor witnessed war and its results. He closed his eyes tightly and tears started to bead, and found his voice was shaky and wet. He wanted to tell them, to let them know just what they were dealing with. 

But Ifrit, he didn't want to be seen as a whore. Didn't want them to see him as the Arachne had. 

'He's you're prince,' Prompto thought, eyes creeping open to find Noct's frantic features. 'He cares for you. He's the King, the last of his blood. Don't hide from him. He won't see you that way. He would never...'

"I..." He gulped. He was really hungry, and the twinkie had had wasn't cutting for him anymore. His stomach twisted on its tenth day of near nothing. Just burning snow the Arachne shoved down his throat. 

"I'm really hungry. Can I talk after we eat?"

"Ah-" Ignis stumbled only momentarily, posture straightening up. "Yes! I made all your favorites."

And by all his favorites, Ignis meant meats, and cheese and buttered toast. And best of all, those scrambled egg sandwiches he always refused to make him during the roadtrip.

'Absolutley not," Ignis had told him one camp-in. 'I might have considered a recipe, had you not admitted to just wanting to squirt iall over in ketchup.'

Prompto had been currently eating red scrambled eggs at the time. Everyone got a plate and everything settled in to relative normalcy, if a bit low on conversation. Prom opened his perfectly cooked sandwich. His mouth watered, but his stomach contracted a bit, already feeling overwhelmed with how much there was. But it didn't matter. He was just happy to have a meal made for humans. Not bloody, gross- he paused, hand halfway to the ketchup bottle. He pulled back suddenly and plated the bread on top, suddenly deciding that he didn't want the meal slathered completely in red gobs. He frowned. 

Fuck. Fuck, he didn't want to eat. He could hear the fucking imp struggling somewhere in the cave. He couldn't see anything at first but then the damn Arachne tore the blinds off, holding the smaller daemon in her grip. It was alive, but it had been disembowled. He screamed as she tried to make him eat pieces of it, the imp screaming profanities before going limp completely. 

'You'll be hungry enough one day,' she sneered at him, tossing a piece of meat into her mouth like it was a French fry. 'And then you'll be licking the blood from my fingers.'

Prompto realized what was happening when Cor sneezed and he came back to the table. No one had noticed him, he thought. His breath came out a bit shaky, so he grabbed his sandwich. He kept telling himself not to think about it, and felt a weird sense of numbness overtake him. His urge to break down in tears receded, and all he thought about was getting at least two bites down. He didn't even taste it. Didn't even feel himself set it back down. He didn't feel anything. 

A hand touched his thigh hesitantly. He was on his feet, chair on the ground as he fell over its wooden legs. Noct stood up to, hand over his mouth with wide, regretful eyes. 

"I'm sorry, Prompto! I didn't mean to scare you, are you-" he paused, momentarily startled by Prom's jacket sleeve slipping halfway down his arm. The layers of gauze wrapped all the way down his arm was darkened red and stiff. The arm that got the worst of the skin tearing, when he was just ripped and peeled the webbing from his cold body. He yanked and sleeve back down. 

"You're hurt?" Noct tried not to sound angry, but it was there. 

Prompto yanked the jacket sleeve back down. The wound was stiff and ached as he brushed his hand against it. 

"I- I was going to tell you," he said, flustered. "It's not that bad."

"Not that bad? Let me see," Noct was moving forward. Prompto scrambled up and backed away, halting his friend who looked at him with a bit of hurt. Prom's cheeks flushed with shame, but he still held back. 

"It's quite alright, Prompto," Ignis had stepped in, in front of everyone so Prompto couldn't see their faces. He didn't even bother to look at Gladio or Cor. He was scared what they'd look like. Ignis grabbed his attention with a stern, but understanding voice. "But the bandages look like they need to be changed. If you'd like, I can get you some supplies and you can do it yourself."

That... that didn't sound that bad, actually. He didn't want anyone else noising around under his clothes. There was too many things wrong 'down there', and he'd be mortified if they found out. Already, a lie had wormed its way into his head, and he kept second-guessing himself. 

Tell? Not tell? 

Ignis gave him a moment of relief though as he offered him a chance to escape. To lick his own wounds without Noctis giving him crap. He nodded, and Iggy walked with him back to the bedroom. Noct made to follow at first, then stopped himself. Prompto saw him hang his head as he talked to Gladio. He ducked his own head too, and followed after Ignis who left him in the bedroom to get supplies. Prompto was sitting on the bed, fiddling with his thumbs when the advisor returned. 

  
"I've brought you some bandages, creams, and a few other things. I'm uncertain to the extent of your injuries, but I want you to let me know if you need anything else." Ignis set down the plastic box, along with some white packets of varying creams for varying wounds. Prompto stared at them, unable to find his voice to say thank you. 

  
"Did you want to talk?" Ignis asked. Prompto shook his head. 

  
"I'm sorry," he said instead. He kept his eyes down. "I didn't mean to scare you guys, or hide anything."

  
"I understand," Ignis simply said. "I'll be back in half and hour. Unless you'd like help."

  
Prompto shook his head again. He didn't ask what would happen when Ignis came back. Just started to build on his lie a little bit more. Ignis left, sutting the door with a soft click.</p>

Gladio wasn't sure what to say. Noctis was being calmed down by Cor who was chastising him for trying to go to Prom's room, who had the prince sit at the table and wait. They all heard the door shut softly and Ignis wander out from the hall. He rubbed his face with his hands. 

"So, what's the damage?" Gladio asked. 

"I don't know. He didn't look like he wanted to share right now," Ignis sighed. 

"So we're just going to ignore it," Noct asked. 

"We're going to give him some time to sort through his thoughts before jumping on him all at once," Cor interjected. "You saw how much weight he lost. He didn't summon his gun until nine days after disappearing - so he couldn't summon it for some reason. Something was preventing him. Something was keeping him from contacting us via phone too."

"He was alone," Ignis noted. 

"Well why don't we just ask him?" Gladio snapped. 

"I asked, but he didn't seem up to it," Ignis snapped back. "I don't want to push anything. I fear the past few days may have been worse than we initially thought."

"So, what, he was held captive or something?" Noct sounded agitated, as if the thought hadn't crossed his mind. 

They hadn't talked much about the gunman last night, save for they wanted to let him rest. But Cor and Ignis had obviously been thinking about this on their own time. Gladio felt a bit of a twist in his gut. He hadn't really thought much of it. He was just relieved Prompto was even alive. Was pretty spooked to see him flying from the dark, shooting his gun in the middle of nowhere like that though. 

"I think he was trapped," Cor explained. "That explains starvation. And if he couldn't summon his gun for that long, it meant he could use his hands. Maybe captivity. Or maybe he somehow got trapped in a damn, shitty situation down in the grotto and got both hands trapped between falling rocks. I doubt that last on is the case though."

"We shouldn't be speculating about it," Noctis said. "He'll tell us when he's ready. Did you help him change his dressings? Give him some elixers?"

"I left everything for him to use. He didn't want to me see," Ignis said. 

They eventually cleaned up the kitchen. Prompto was still upstairs by the time Ignis had everything clean and their things gathered. They were going to head back down to Hammerhead. Noctis had decided - against Cor's wishes to keep looking for the royal arms - that they'd stay there for a while. Until Prompto was healed and back on his feet. Ignis knew the decision to hide for a while bothered Gladio too. Yet Ignis was actually looking forward to being both still and incognito from the empire. 

He was damn sick of driving. 

***

The scream of fury rang down the icy tunnels. A stray bone shattered against the wall as the Arachne threw it in a fit of rage. 

'How dare he?!' she thought. 'How dare that brat defy me?!'

She had found blood, and webbing torn in shreds against the stone. Her slave's skin had been left behind in chunks. She followed the red trail, leading out of her chambers and through the annoying horde of lesser daemons that had wanted a taste of her slave. They'd heard rumors from the pests that she'd snagged a human. They'd all tried to outnumber her and push their way in, wanting to have their way with him all at once. It pissed her off. She'd been eating them at her leisure ever since. 

Her slave her passed by them and wound his way up to the shallower channels. She was worryingly impressed by how far he'd gotten. She expected to find him passed out in the cold by now. But no. She carried on, striking down any pesky daemons trying to annoy her, before pausing several feet from the mouth the grotto's entrance. The sunlight burned where it just touched the tip of her legs. She reared back and screamed, furious at the sun for blocking her path, and pacing along the cave lip's shadow. 

'Enjoy your freedom while you can, little human,' the Arachne thought darkly. 'I will find you, and you will learn your place soon enough.'


	7. Chapter 7

The car ride was long and boring. Prompto played a bit of King's Knight with Noctis to pass the time, but his heart wasn't into it. Afterwards, the prince was extra dotey on him, asking if he wanted to stop for pictures or get a bite to eat. Prompto tried to keep a higher energy to appease his friend. He knew Noctis was just worried about him. Was trying to make him feel better. But Prompto just wanted to roll into a ball and disappear.

Everyone was giving him space. It was nice, but he also knew that they'd have to deal with this sooner or later. Gladio though, seemed extra stiff around him. It made Prompto feel self-conscious and he tried to enjoy seeing the sun and the blue sky again. He focused on how Noctis wasn't just going to just dump him off and continue on his journey. Prompto had been startled at Noct's willingness to stall everything for him; yet at the same time, it was all too much.

He didn't want to face this. He didn't want to do anything, really. He floated in his head for most of the car ride to Hammerhead. When they were almost there, he felt a tap on his shoulder. He didn't jump like last time someone touched him, but his heart's beat skyrocketed to a hundred miles a minute as he turned to look at Noctis with a small smile. 

"Hey, buddy. What's up?"

But Noctis wasn't staring at Prompto's face. He was worriedly staring to his side, eyes wide and hand still out stretched as if no tsure what to do. 

"You- you're hurt." Noct stammered. 

Prompto's face went pale when he noticed the red dribbling onto the car seat. It was soaking the side of his pant leg, seeping into Noct's pants as well. He didn't feel anything, but the sight made his stomach clench. 

"Ignis, pull over the car!" Noctis demanded. "Prompto's bleeding!" 

He felt eye son his as Ignis immediately slowed down and the car tucked itself into the side of the road. Cor clambered out from the other side of Noctis, while the prince moved over to crouch by Prompto's side, hands flailing as if he didn't know what to do. 

"You should of had Ignis take a look," Noct said. "Did you use the elixirs that Ignis gave you?"

Prompto's mouth went dry. No. He'd just cleaned up and went to bed. Didn't bother looking at anything else, didn't want to. His lack of answer left some anger in Noct's face.

"Prom, you can't leave things untreated," Noct griped. 

"You're the one to talk," Prompto snapped, jerking away from the soft touch at his shirt. Noctis pulled back like he'd been shocked. 

"I'm just worried!" He retorted. "We thought you were dead, and now you're letting yourself bleed out all over the place!" 

'You're letting yourself...' 

Hot rage filled Prompto's face with red, hot blood. He opened the car door, snapping off his seatbelt with a curse. His side throbbed as he stood. Yet he managed to hide the sway in his posture. He held a hand to his side, feeling warmth dribble from there. 

'Ah. The rock he fell on...' he thought bitterly. 'A parting gift from the grottos.'

"Let me take a look," Ignis had said something, but Prompto only caught the last bit of it. The gunslinger was startled by the man's sudden appearance and stumbled backwards over his feet, away from the car and away from everyone else. 

"I just need to stop the bleeding," Ignis told him, like he was talking to a scared animal. 

Prompto was going to tell him to screw off, that he could fix it later himself. But he saw his hand pressed to his side, red slipping through his fingers and leaving everything red and sticky. He could feel the bruises on his skin too. The bite marks on his collarbone and shoulders. The handprints on his waist and legs. The ugly wounds and cuts that the spider had left permanently carved into his cock and balls.

He felt humiliated. He felt disgusting. He wished he had never ran after the regalia in the parking lot. 

"I can't... I can't keep doing this," Prompto choked out. He looked at Noct when he said it, voice flushed with unshed tears he fought tooth and nail to keep from falling. 

"Doing what, Prom?" Noctis went from angry to soft-spoke and scared. He looked as lost as Prompto felt. "We're here to help you, we're going to see Cindy-"

"And do what?" Prompto pushed. "Hide and twiddle out thumbs? Wait out the empire while it sacks the rest of the kingdom? Prioritize me over the lives of everyone else in Lucis? Noctis, you can't play wet nurse to me right now. You can't afford to. I'm not going to be able to help you! I know I can't. I know I can't keep traveling with you anymore-"

"Who said anything about that?" Noctis demanded. "I'm not leaving you! You know I'd never do that!" 

"Exactly!" Prompto's fingers dug into his wound a little; just to feel the pain, just to ignore the urge to freak out and cry. "But you guys can't do that! You need to go find the rest of those arms before every road to one is barricaded and patrolled!" 

"But I don't want to leave you!" 

Prompto turned away, just to hide his face as it crumpled. He didn't want to do this. Didn't want to have this conversation at all. Noctis wouldn't give in. He was too stubborn, to spoilt to do so. And there was the tiniest bit of relief there because of it. He hated it. He hated the stretch of silence that carried on. 

"You're not broken, Prompto," Gladio spoke up. Prompto didn't turn to him, but he listened. "Whatever happened, it's not over. There's still going to be challenges you have to work through. But you can't do that alone. We have no way to Altissia, and no more leads on the arms. And MTs have been swarming to us like flies lately. Laying low is our best option, whether you're with us or not. But we do want you with us. More alive than not," he added, gesturing to the blood. 

Cor sighed. "Gladiolus is right. As much as I hate to put my feet up and dawdle too, there's not much else to do. But, maybe it's a blessing in disguise. All of us could use a moment of rest. Myself, included."

"I'll be quick," Ignis said. Prompto turned a little, looking at the advisor with the first aid kit already in hand, gesturing to sit on the front passenger seat. Prompto wordlessly stalked over there, sitting down in between the open car doors so no one but Iggy could see under his shirt. A cold hand touched the bottom of the fabric. Prompto hesitated before nodding, and bite back against the hiss that came with fabric being peeled from dry blood. He had put back on the jackets and pants from the convenience store - big, heavy things that suddenly felt as private as a thong when Ignis studied the wound. 

He knew it looked bad. The rock had tore into the front of his ribs all the way to the middle of his back. It was shallow at the ends - a litany of purple and green, and puffy skin. At the center, the blood was draining. Prompto had cleaned out some of the dirt, but it hadn't been open when he'd last checked. He hissed as Ignis got to work cleaning the ripped edges. No one questioned him. Ignis didn't comment, just worked with a determined hand. 

Prompto took a deep, steadying breath. He felt... calmer, if not better.

And it was right then that he decided to just try and get it out. Anything he could, just to break the ice he'd been slipping on. He swallowed, looked at Noctis, and opened his mouth. Then shut it, because fuck, he couldn't do this.

"Hey, what's up?" But Noctis had caught him trying, and jumped to the car door where the crouched so he was eye level with his friend. "Do you need anything?"

"No, Noct... I... want to... but, I don't know how to talk about what happened."

Prompto felt an immediate change in the atmopshere. Felt it shift from the tense, heavyness of Ignis working and blood pouring, to a fragile stillness that felt like it could shatter if anyone moved too fast. 

"You can talk when you're ready," Noctis said. "I don't want you to push yourself, Prom. I just want to help you get better."

Prompto smiled. It was watery and threatened to burden him with more tears. "I really missed you, man."

Noctis' eyes started to bead too. "I missed you too. I missed you so fucking much."

If he could have, Prompto would have given him a big hug. But, like the first time, he knew it'd feel claustrophobic. Knew he'd feel the same way he did when those webs were pinning his limbs tightly to his body. Fuck, he couldn't move. Could barely breath save for shallow, panicked dime-sized breathes. He didn't notice how he fell back into his own head. Didn't realize that he wasn't in the cave anymore, or that Ignis stopped working and asked if he was okay. 

"Prompto?" Ignis tried again, and glazed blue eyes focused back on him. 

He opened his mouth a few times, like a fish out of water, and then the tears finally broke free and he couldn't stop them. 

"I'm embarrassed," he choked out. "I'm so fucking embarrassed, I don't know how to cope with this. I don't know how to forget."

"We're here, Prom, we're right here and we're not judging," Noct said, voice almost desperate. 

"I almost didn't want you to find me," Prompto continued. He found himself looking at his boots through hazy vision. "I had just escaped several hours ago, and.... and I could have called you guys. The clerk had a phone, but, but I didn't know what I'd say. I just wanted to sleep, I'm sorry. I just wanted to lay down for a second and close my eyes."

He trailed off, wondering why he felt so horribly guilty over that. 

"And then I wake up, hearing Gladio and Cor. I think, 'am I dreaming?' before I see the walking wall of muscle book it out the door," Prompto chuckled dryly. "You guys were already peeling out of the parking lot before I had a chance to even recognize you."

No one else thought it was quite as funny. 

"I don't... I don't understand," Noctis began. "You should have called us, we were on our way down to the grotto - I just felt you use your gun... you used it once so many times and just stopped. I didn't know what to think."

"You guys were going to the grotto? Really?"

"As soon as we realized you could still be alive," Cor said. "It was majority vote to get our asses down there, whether or not we were in the middle of arm gathering."

"Is that where you were?" Noctis asked. "I'm sorry, Prom. I can't tell you how sorry I am that we left you there."

Two unspoken questions hung in the air. 'How'd you survive?' and 'What happened down there?'

"I.. yeah, I was still in the grotto," Prompto began. His hand traveled down to the wound that Ignis had finished bandaging. "I got this while escaping..."

A few heads looked at Cor subtly, though Prompto was unsure why. He figured Cor had an idea of his circumstances, maybe shared it with the others. Prompto was sure Cor had seen plenty of victims like himself. It made him feel a lot more exposed. 

"Escaping?" Noctis' worry kicked up a few notches. "Like, as in..."

And Prompto wasn't sure how, but he just blurted it out, face and voice like stone. "A daemon found me after I fell in the water. It kept me alive and..." he paused again, "...and it hurt me... for fun."

"What?" Noctis squeaked. 

Prompto buried his face in his hand. Shiva, he was tired. Tired and hungry, but not wanting to fix either. 

"I feel.... weird," Prompto kept saying. "I feel gross, and jumpy, and I keep... I keep thinking I'm back in that cave with... with..." he ground his teeth together. his whole body felt flushed with heat and agitation. 

"I was just an object. I kept thinking about how much I missed you. I badly I wanted to let you know I was alive - but - but it kept me from using my hands. It would..." He didn't know how to explain the sexual abuse. Didn't know if he could breach that line the way he was breaching the first. So he just trailed off and stopped talking. 

"We're not leaving you again," Cor stated it as a-matter-of-fact. "You've been through a traumatic experience. You were tortured." Prompto flinched at the use of that word, but Cor pushed on in that stubborn, grim-faced way of his. "It'll take time. There will probably be set-backs. But as his Highness said, we're here for you, kid. Hammerhead will be a safe place for you to work through everything."

Prompto nodded. He felt that numbness he'd felt the first time he woke up in the Lestallum hotel room. 

He didn't want to talk anymore. He had nothing else to say, accept to a small thank you to Ignis. Cor seemed to understand, and ordered everyone back into their seats so they could keep rolling on. Prompto laid with his head on the car window, shaky and tired. He felt Noct's body tense and unsure next to his. The prince was very obviously trying to keep from touching the other. 

And a memory came to the gunslinger. 

The Arachne, holding him in her arms like some newborn baby, trailing kisses and bites along his neck and chest. She had caught him talking in his sleep, mumbling the names of the companions who left him. She woken him up, teasing him by telling him how his body was hers. How he was just her cunt-slave. How his friends had left him and wouldn't dare want to touch a gross, used-up dildo. 

Prompto looked down at Noct's hand, settled nervously on his lap. He gunslinger timidly reached out, and Noct snapped his head up in surprise as fingers graced over his own. Prompto gingerly clasped his hand in Noct's. It was a loose grip, one he could easily retract himself from. 

"I don't want to be scared of touching you," Prompto told him. 

"Don't force yourself to, if it's too much. I understand."

The prince's answer seemed to add a bit of cooling salve to Prompto's nerves, and he kept his hand where it was. As they drove to Hammerhead, he was able to keep the thoughts of the Arachne at bay.


	8. Chapter 8

Cid and Cindy welcomed the bros with open arms, and gave them room to stay in the rooms above the garage.

The space was small and had been previously used for storage. They had cleaned it out when learning the prince needed shelter. The smell of oil was heavy. It was a drafty attic-room with a wall in the middle and metal piping exposed on the roof. Prompto didn't like the cold. At all. But he bit his tongue as he made up his mattress in the corner of the room. Noct had one a few feet away, while Iggy and Gladio shared the other corner. Cor was to sleep in the car (his idea) to watch the road and keep an eye on things at night. 

"You wanna anything from Takka's?" Noctis asked him. "We're gonna pick up lunch. I could bring you something."

Prompto laid out his pillow, grinning despite himself as he tunneled himself under the blankets. They smelt like a grandma's house, and were fuzzy enough to keep him warm. "Uh, sure. I don't know how much I'll eat, but like, maybe a salad or something?"

Noct tried to hide his slight frown. Prompto knew he was worried, but anything heavy or meaty sounded downright revolting. Prompto could have laughed too, though. Noctis was sure one to be upset over someone else's picky eating habits. 

"What about something to drink? Milkshake?" 

Prompto made a face, hiding it as he unrolled himself from the covers. "Uh, actually, does Takka have tea?"

"Tea? I mean, yeah, probably. You want tea?"

"Yeah, I don't care what kind though. As long as it's hot."

Noctis nodded, trying to hide his confusion. "Hot tea, no problem."

Noctis left Prompto to his cleaning, wandering down the steps to the garage where Cindy was working. She had already been briefed about the situation, and how agitated and nervous Prompto could get. She was more than happy to do whatever she could to help. 

"Why hey there, your Highness!" Came her chipper hello. "You fellows settlin' in alright?"

"As well as we can be," Noct admitted. "Thanks again for letting us stay here."

"Stay as long as ya like. Me and PawPaw love the company. Don't we?" she called over her shoulder, to Cid who was lounging his usual spot by the garage door. 

"As long as they stay out from under my feet!" he shouted back. 

Cindy laughed, giving Noct a shrug. "He means well. You gonna head to Takka's?"

"Yeah, gonna grab and go. I want Prompto to eat something."

"Good. I do hope you get him well again," Cindy said. "I'm sorry you boys have been dealin' with this war and everything in between."

"Thanks, Cindy," Noct said honestly. 

He found Ignis, Gladio and Cor already waiting on their food. They had chosen a booth near the back, despite the constant lack of customers. Noctis ordered his food to go, then walked over to take a seat near Cor. 

"How's Prompto settling in?" Gladio asked. The shield had been hiding it well, but Noct could tell that Prom's previous confession had shaken him up. Knowing for sure that he was tortured had brought clarity to everyone's reality. 

"He seems fine right now. Was even smiling," Noct said. "I'm trying not to be pushing him about the food or anything though, but I'm worried. I don't want to upset him."

"What did he ask for?" Ignis asked. 

"Salad and hot tea."

"Salad's not weird, but tea? For Prompto? I've never seen the kid order it form anywhere," Gladio said. 

"Only drink on the menu that ain't cold," Cor shrugged. "We'll probably be noticing a lot of 'off' things in the next few days. All we can is not make him feel bad for making these choices. He's allowed to have tea, and none of us are going to poke fun at it."

"You think he wants it because the grotto was cold?" Noct asked. 

"Who knows what reminds him of what," Cor continued. "Not much we can do. Until he opens up more and let's us know what specifically bothers him, we can only carry on as normal."

"At least he didn't say no to food," Ignis sighed. "Speaking of, did you order anything, Noct?"

"Just a side of fries and a coke. Today has left me without much of an appetite."

Then he realized how hypocritical that sounded, and wondered if Prompto would notice how little he ordered. Cor said to be normal. So he stood and ordered another sandwich. One he could split if Prompto wanted the other half. He carried his food back to the garage, up the cold metal steps, to the their little attic room. He found Prompto staring out the tiny window - a dusty thing, and the only one in the room. He was gazing off towards the large cropping of rocks far out across the plains. He turned and smiled at Noct. 

"Smells good," he admitted, falling next to Noctis where he sat at the end of the mattress. 

"I got a salad for you, and some tea. Takka only had green." He piled them up by Prom's feet. "And I got a sandwich and fries."

He didn't ask if Prom wanted any, just set it next to Prom's food, hoping he'd snag a fry like he usually does when they ate at Kenny's. He picked one up himself, and tossed it between his teeth. Prompto picked up his salad. He picked at it at first, then began to eat away at the leafy bits, some cheese, and a crouton here and there. They ate in silence, and when finished, Noctis noticed how Prompto left his cherry tomatoes alone. Before Noctis could stop himself, he pointed it out. Prom went stiff. Noctis immediately bit the inside of his mouth, and cursed himself. 

"I mean, I'll eat them, if you don't want them," he tried to say instead.

Prompto left his fork sitting on the edge of the plastic bowl. "I mean, if you want," he said, handing it over. "You hate tomatoes though..."

"Ah, yeah..." Noct began awkwardly. 

"And I like them. So you must be wondering why I didn't eat them." Prompto concluded. "You can be honest with me, Noctis. I've made up my mind about this. I'm going to work through what happened, but you can't beat around the bush like that."

"Sorry, I, I was trying to not say anything out of the ordinary," Noct admitted. "I don't want to treat you any differently than before, but I can't stand to see you hurting either. I want to help. I just, I really don't know how."

Prompto wiped at his eyes. "Don't apologize." He leaned to the side, bumping shoulders with Noct. He was stiff at first, then slowly slumped into him. "I don't want things to be different either. I don't want to lie, but it's hard to talk about."

"I'd never judge you," Noct said seriously. "I'd never ever think differently about you, no matter what happened."

Prompto felt his private areas throb - a reminder of the mutilation and horror and embarrassment of the last several days. He closed his eyes, willing the sudden spike of panic to go away. Noct shifted a little. 

"Are you okay?"

"I just felt suddenly... scared," Prompto admitted. "I like hearing you say that, but... it just makes me worried all over again. I know you would never judge me, Noct, but I don't think it's that simple."

"I know," came the soft reply. "Nothing is ever simple. But we'll work through it, dude. Together, you and me always. Right?"

"I'm really grateful to be your friend," Prompto said. "More than anything, I'm happy that I got to see you again. The... the Arachne..." he stopped, gulped. He hadn't said what the daemon was yet, hadn't wanted to put an image in Noct's head of her physically. "It wasn't going to kill me, and after a while, I knew I couldn't escape like that."

Noctis had stiffened considerably. The two were still leaning against the other as Prompto studied the wall and kept talking. 

"It feels weird saying that aloud," he admitted. "It feels weird talking about it all."

"You wouldn't... consider..." Noct trailed off, a horrible tightness to his voice that meant he was on the verge of crying. 

Prompto pulled away to give Noctis his full attention. "No. No, not here. Not outside of that grotto... I was just trying to say, that, well... the only thing that kept me sane down there was thinking about you and the others. All I could do was reflect back on good memories, to keep myself afloat. But then, when I did escape and I had the chance to call... I really don't know why I didn't do it immediately."

"You had called on me, summoning your gun," Noctis pointed out. 

Prompto almost laughed, feeling himself being sucked back to the high ceiling, swinging back and forth from... from... 

"Hey, I'm sorry, Prom!" Noct was saying, not touching him but hovering before him frantically. "You with me?"

"Sorry, sorry," he blinked and shook his head. He felt numb again. 

"Did I say anything?" Noctis asked. "Did I do anything-"

"No, I just... I started to think about it. About... when I escaped." 

He felt shut-down. Whereas he'd been able to smile and tease Noct just moments ago, a terrible coldness seeped into his bones and made him feel like nothing. He stared at the floor, unfeeling as his fingers knotted in the blankets. 

"I think... I think I'm gonna lay down for a bit," he finally said. 

Noct blinked a few times. He looked devastated, and could barely hide it. Prompto (for some reason that'd he'd feel guilty for later) didn't care. He just wanted to shut his eyes and go away. Away from this terrible stillness overtaking his being. So he was left alone, sliding beneath the covers as Noct carried out the leftovers. He told Prompto to take as much rest as he needed, and that he'd warm up his tea for him later.

Prompto sobbed silently into his pillow until he fell asleep. 


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> this chapter focuses a bit more on the bros and their perspectives, rather than Prompto's

Four days passed in relative peace. Noctis had been spending most of his time with Prompto in the attic, or going on long walks with the gunslinger. Prompto had wanted to stretch his legs and be under the open sky, he'd told the prince. Noctis - though Prom never opened up anymore about what happened in the grotto - did everything he could to help Prompto feel stable. Even if it meant early morning walks before he was fully awake. If he acted like he was really exhausted, Prompto would laugh and tell him to go back to bed, to which Noctis would trudge downstairs to start the first of many miles. 

It became Noctis' goal to make Prompto laugh. It became his goal to give his friend as many moments of fleeting happiness as he could, in between the difficult, scary ones. 

Meanwhile, Gladio had been keeping his distance. He'd been helping Cid around Hammerhead mostly. He'd sometimes take a day for himself to hunt some pests, earn a few gil (not that Cid ever charged them for anything anymore. Takka either.) Gladio's heart was heavy with guilt, and seeing the prince care for Prompto made it worse. And feeling bad, that Prompto was getting well cared for, made him feel doubly worse. 

And that was how Gladio found himself outside Cindy and Cid's barely used kitchenette, knocking on the frame to ask Ignis for some advice. The advisor was peeling potatoes. He stopped what he was doing, setting aside his peeler and asking Gladio to take as eat with him at the table. 

"Is it that obvious I need a counseling session?" Gladio asked. 

"As much as you'd like to tell yourself you're harder to read than a rock," Ignis supplied. "Sit. What's got you bothered?"

"You can take a guess," Gladio huffed, pulling out the chair. "I just... fuck me, Iggy. I can't get over this guilt. I mean, I was the one who forced Noctis to leave the grotto. You saw how he fought me the whole way back. If it hadn't been for me, Noct would'a probably found Prom and we could'a avoided this whole mess. And as much as I tell myself to get over it and move on, I'm loosing sleep."

"I see," Ignis said. "I've been feeling a bit of the same way myself. I too, thought Prompto was as good as dead. We wanted to keep Noctis safe. And now Prompto has to deal with the consequences of that choice."

"Fuck, makin' me feel worse, Iggy," Gladio groaned. 

"As shitty as it may be to here, I've been thinking about this just as much," Ignis said. "Who knows what could have happened had we let Noctis go back. He was hurt, completely fatigued and in stasis. You were the only one with a weapon currently summoned, and I couldn't retirve my daggers from the arminger. Noctis couldn't get anything from there either."

"We could have rested, we could have-"

"And Prompto fell down miles of current. He was found by a daemon, who saved his life. No matter if we'd been coming or not, Prompto would have been found by his captor. Who knows if we'd have even found them, looking aimlessly in a cave system we'd already gotten lost in several times. We had the arm. We had the prince. We had only one way to go. I know it's hard, Gladio. But I don't think Prompto blames us. I don't believe he'd want us to grovel in our self-pity. It... for lack of a better term, sucks ass."

Gladio couldn't help the rouge snort that left him. He'd have to get Ignis to use that term more often. "Yeah, it does suck ass, doesn't it?"

"I admit, I don't want to engage Prompto and make it worse," Ignis said. "Noctis has been doing well, though. He's fallen into the role of 'friend' more readily than any other role given to him. Perhaps we can take a page from his book."

"Yeah, I've been thinking the same thing," Gladio said. "It's like you're reading my mind. It's just that, I've never been particularly close to Prompto. We're buddy-enough, but I think I make him nervous."

Ignis actually laughed aloud at that. "Well, I suppose you're intimidating at first, but Prompto has grown quite fond of you since his high school days. Remember that. You're his friend just as much as he is Noctis'."

Gladio had mulled over Ignis' advice. He had never thought of Prompto as a friend. But neither did he ever consider Iggy one until the war started. But he'd always been Ignis' friend, though, hadn't he? Gladio sighed. He was oblivious to this stuff. He left the kitchenette to clear his mind with a run. But as he passed by Takka's he noticed a bright splash of blonde hair sitting against the restaurant's outside walls. Gladio paused, and made his way over to the gunslinger. 

Prompto had his back pressed to the wall, face up and eyes closed. He was directly in the sunlight, soaking in the warmth with a steaming cup clasped between his hands. He'd been drinking tea everyday now. The cup was pressed close to his chest. 

"Prompto!" Gladio called out before he got to close, trying not to startle the other. His plan failed though, and some tea spilt over Prom's shirt. He smiled and waved off Gladio's apology. 

"Ah, I was getting cold anyway," he teased. "What's up, Gladio?"

Had he not admitted to being tortured just a few days ago, Gladio would have thought everything was just peaches and creams. Weight and color had seeped back into Prompto's form and his personality had been slowly coming back to life. Little by little. He still kept himself in those ugly jackets, though, always keeping it buttoned up to the top slot. Gladio told himself not think about what he could be hiding under there. 

"I was just gonna head out and collect some wood for Takka," Gladio said. "He wants to have a fire pit in a few days."

"Oh yeah!" Prompto jumped up, excited. "Noctis said he was throwing a party for his anniversary at work."

It was known to everyone that Cid had helped Takka through some rough times. The two were brothers, with how close they'd become, and Takka liked to do celebrations every year on the day he first started as a cook. Cid said they had always been small. Just him, Takka, and Cindy, drinking, eating and playing games all night. But this year, Takka wanted something big, fun, and welcome to all their new allies. Gladio was just excited to drink. He heard Takka was pulling in some new shipments of real good booze. Stuff that could knock Gladio out. 

"Yeah, it'll be fun. I'm gonna try and hunt a few dualhorn too. Takka's been sending me out on grocery runs everyday now."

Prompto's face fell - barely noticeable - at the mention of a hunt. But he hid it, and jumped off the wall. "Sure!" He finished his tea, throwing the cup away as they passed by the vacant RV area. Gladio would have rather spent the night there, but the empire had been patrolling Leide more heavily. It was only a matter of time before they checked out Hammerhead again for the wanted prince. Cindy had rigged the attic room, so that if it ever happened, the investigating MTs would only find a heavy wall behind the trapdoor. 

"They already tried to push through the room months ago when it was packed full of our equipment," Cindy had told them. "They won't question it."

Gladio hoped so. Prompto was still weak, and probably couldn't fight. It was probably why he didn't want to hunt either. Gladio figured he'd just do most of the legwork and make sure Prompto didn't feel obligated to draw his gun and fight. Easy peasy, he told himself. Just act normal.

Gladio tried to start a conversation as they walked. Up and over the hot, red rocks, he asked about things that went no where. 

How was your morning?

Was your tea good?

You excited for Takka's party?

Gladio felt stupid after asking the last one, and Prompto started to become a bit more withdrawn because of the awkward silences in between their words. Gladio really wished Ignis was here. Or Noctis could just appear out of nowhere and take the gunslinger far away from his bumbling conversation skills. Killing things was so much easier than this, Gladio thought. This felt like a freaking game of chess. 

Luckily, the duo came up over a crest and found a small grove of shrubby trees. Gladio summoned his broadsword, hacking at the thin, brittle branches and creating a broken pile around it. Prompto stood back and watched quietly. 

"You can start just breaking off branches," Gladio told him, pointing to the dry shrubs around them. "We don't need much, just an armful. I've been collecting it for a few days, so we almost have what we need anyway."

Prompto wordlessly walked to another bush and started to break pieces off with his bare hands. He had made a neat pile by the time Gladio was done. 

"Awesome," Gladio tried to be enthusiastic. Prompto didn't react much at all. "Um, looks good. We can head back. I didn't see any dual horns on the way down here, so I doubt any will cross us on the way back. One out of two ain't bad, though, right?"

"Not bad at all," Prompto said. He hefted the sticks against his chest in their prickly bundle and made to follow Gladio. He had two stacks tucked under his arms. They made a strange looking pair as they weaved their way along the hot ground, back to Hammerhead. Before they got back, lady luck seemed to favor Gladio that day. She put a whole herd of dual horn in their path. 

"Hot damn," Gladio whistled, dropping his sticks and summoning his sword. "I'm gonna snag a few if I can. You can jump in if you want, Prom."

Prompto didn't say anything. Gladio hardly noticed. He was just happy to not have to make two trips. Takka would probably go out of his way to save him a few good bottles of booze for his efficiency. 

The sword came down on the startled animals. While most fled, a few turned around to attack Gladio with their tearing horns. They danced around him, dodging his blade and trying to stab his middle. Gladio swept one creature completely off its feet, cleaving it in half. A crunch, followed by the splattering of blood, dissuaded the second dual horn from further fighting. It fled. The last living dual horn snorted angrily and charged him. 

"Don't think so," he grunted as the flat of his blade halted the powerful horns. He swept back and the animal spun away, exposing its side. Gladio cut down its legs and then stomach in two, broad motions. The creature's scream was cut off as it dropped to the ground. Gladio de-summoned his blade and wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Not bad, huh Prom-" He stopped, catching Prompto completely white-faced and staring at the dead dual horn with wide eyes. 

"Prompto?"

Gladio took a step forward, and the gunslinger dropped to the dirt. 

***

Ignis finished up the last of his stew and then left the pot to simmer for the next several hours. Cindy had been kind enough to let him cook dinners some nights. He didn't have a lot to work with (Leide had very few, natural ingredients) and nothing too fresh. But Ignis didn't use the meat Gladio brought in. He didn't want to make it obvious, as Prompto was obviously trying to hide it, but he stopped eating meat completely. 

Ignis didn't want to make a big deal of it either. So he started cooking dishes that were vegetarian. Noctis hadn't made any fuss about it, much to Ignis' surprise. of course, the prince had Takka's burgers to tide him over. 

Speaking of said prince...

"Hey, Specs," Noct greeted. Ignis turned off the sink and turned around. Noctis was yawning, have just gotten up from an impromptu nap in the shade. His first nap since Prompto disappeared. It made Ignis well aware of how essential the gunman was during this war. 

"Good afternoon, Noctis. Sleep well?"

He smiled, wiping the crumbs from his eyes. "Yeah, actually. I did. Where's Prompto?"

"He and Gladiolus went out to fetch fire wood," Ignis supplied. He chuckled at Noct's reaction. "I was surprised too, but I'm happy to see them go do something. You may not know it, but Gladio's been struggling with his own feelings of guilt."

Noct's cheeks turned red and he shrugged. "He's got nothing to feel guilty for."

The memory of Noctis came. Noctis with tears running down his red-hot face, spittle flying from his mouth as he cursed both of them for dragging him away. As he told Gladio that he was killing his best friend - the only reason he even wanted to live anymore.

Ignis shut his eyes to divert his attention back to the present. He decided to let the topic drop. 

"What are you making?"

"Potato stew. Cindy will be bringing home fresh bread from town, as well."

Noctis smiled, forgetting their previous topic. "You called this place home?"

"Home as it will ever be for us, I suppose," Ignis explained. "But I do admit, it's nice to be stationary."

"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. It's been really nice. Like, peaceful, you know."

Ignis was going to ask if Noctis had other things on his mind, but a loud bellow from outside drew both their attentions. It was Galdio. As soon as Ignis recognized the voice, he was alone in the kitchen. The shivering haze of Noct's dissipating form meant he was already outside. Ignis ran after him. He could see Cid standing at the pumps, and Gladio and Noctis in the middle of the road. 

"Is everything okay?" Cor asked, running up from behind Ignis. He had a towel around his hips, wet from stealing a shower in Cid's room. 

"I don't know," Ignis said, already running across the dirt. And under his breath he sighed, "With our luck, probably not."


	10. Chapter 10

Prompto woke up with a head ache. He hissed as he opened his eyes, and light flooded through the slits, making his head throb worse. 

"Damn it," he moaned, hand coming up to block it out. 

"Ah, sorry, sorry!" Noctis' worried voice came with some shade. Prompto blinked and looked up into his face tucked under the pulled up back of his jacket. He was holding it over both their heads like a tent. "Are you okay? Gladio said you passed out."

"Did I?" Prompto saw that they were in the attic room. He was startled when he realized that Ignis and Gladio were sitting on Noct's bed, watching nearby. "Oh, uh..."

"I'm just happy to see you awake," Gladio said.

He looked nervous - weird for the big guy - and was playing with the hem of his pant leg. Like he didn't want to make eye contact with Prompto. Again. _Weird._ Prompto didn't like it. 

"I'm okay, guys," Prompto said. "I think it was the sun or something."

"I'll go get you some water," Noctis said. Mentally, Prompto wanted to plead with him to stay, let someone else get it. But Noct looked like he'd been waiting to ask that for hours now. "Are you hungry at all?"

"No, water's cool by itself. Thanks."

Noctis eased away from him, and Prompto blinked against the light of the single bulb in the room. It didn't seem as bright as he'd initially thought. He watched Noctis go, and felt very strange to be alone with Specs and Gladdy, respectively. But Ignis was all business, kneeling by Prompto with a wet rag he'd had by the bed. There was a bowl of water and he noticed the first aid kit off to the side. 

"Was I hurt?" He asked, a bit defensively. 

"You bumped your head, but it was a small cut," Ignis said, asking him to turn so he could see it. Prompto felt stiff. 

"You didn't..." 

"I didn't look at anything but your head," Ignis promised. 

Prompto nodded and turned, feeling Ignis check the bandage and feeling him replace the gauze beneath. It came out only a little pink. 

"There, all set." 

Prompto felt his scalp, hearing Noctis come up the steps with a mug. He handed it over, the clink of ice cubes making his skin itch. He took it anyway. He didn't look down, but clasped it away from his body as subtly as he could, thanking Noctis. 

"Sorry, Gladio," Prompto began. "You probably had to carry me all the way back here, huh?"

"Prompto, you really scared the crap outta me," Gladio told him. "I know it might be a lot to ask, but please tell me when you're not feelin' right."

Shame flooded his chest. Prompto looked down at the mug, then felt sick when he stared too long at the frosty cubes inside. He couldn't help it. Tears welled up and one fell into the cup. His face twisted as he tried to stop himself, but he couldn't. He was too weak to even do that. 

Noctis was saying something beside him. But Prompto could only shake his head, and take a solid, shuddering breath. 

"No, no, I'm..." he choked again, and struggled to regain his composure. "I'm just... I want to tell you. I don't want to keep it in- but..."

He shook his head, more tears leaking into the cup. He lifted it up and gestured with it, as if it held all the answers. 

"...the ice." he finally managed. 

Ignis took the cup to him, probably thinking Prompto was offering it the way he held it out.

"The ice?" Ignis asked. 

"The... the Arachne," he spluttered. One breath. Two. He reigned himself in. These were his friends he was talking to. No. His family. His last living family, who were doing everything they could to help him. He was so tired of carrying this burden alone. So tired of hiding.

"The Arachne didn't... didn't let me eat."

Ignis set the mug down. The glass clinked against the rim. There was a beat of silence, so Prompto kept going. 

"I mean, I could eat... I could, but I didn't..." he shut his eyes again, feeling on the verge of panic. His hands had started to shake. He clasped them on his lap and forced another breath down his lungs. "To keep me alive, she would shove ice down my throat. I- I don't like it. I don't like it cold in my mouth. Because of that..."

He looked up. Everyone was paying him rapt attention. Ignis had laced his fingers together and hide half his face behind them, though. A sign he was upset. Gladio too, had that determined anger about him, though still composed. But Noctis looked downright like a baby chocobo being told it was gonna be fried and served with gravy. He had slid the mug farther from Prompto, before timidly reaching out. Prompto decided, despite the creeping fear of skin to skin contact, reached out and grasped it. 

"I should have... I should have told you, Gladio," Prompto continued. "I thought it was a bad idea to go... I just didn't realize, until you killed them."

Ignis and Noctis gave Gladio a questioning look. 

"The dual horns," Gladio said. "It's okay, Prompto, we know now."

"It's not okay," Prompto sucked in another breath. The flare of anger he'd just felt was so sudden and strong, he had to collect himself. "No-I.... I don't know how to explain... I just _heard_ the dual horn being broken. And it... it took me back to the grotto. The Arachne would eat living creatures and then...." he gulped, found he had no more room to describe the scene, and instead gestured to his own lips. 

"It was all she'd let me eat," he muttered. 

Noctis sucked in a harsh breath. His grip tightened and Prompto felt himself pull away. Noctis seemed to panic, but Prompto flattened his hand with his own. He looked down at the grip, then up at the prince whose eyes were beading with tears. 

"I can't... be held tight, either," Prompto began sadly. He held Noctis' hand though, only his fingers trapped between skin and fabric. "I... I...."

He thought about telling them of the confinement. Of being suffocated and pinned to the wall like an object to be stored away when not in use. He cleared his throat, and knew he wouldn't be able to get through it. Not yet. Not now. He was relieved to have said what he'd confessed to already. 

"I like your touch, though. The nice ones. And walking, and being under the sky," he said instead. "I'm just really, really happy that all three of you are here. That you're letting me open up... And I don't want you to blame yourselves for leaving me. Because," and he laughed through his blubbering, "I'd be pissed if I knew you were beating yourself up over it. Any one of you."

Noct's hand fluttered under his, as if wanting to grab but keeping itself pinned. Instead, Noct just nodded, tears streaming down his face as he listened. Ignis nodded too, and Gladio followed. 

"We, too, have been immensely grateful to have you back with us," Ignis said. 

"Yeah. It's not the same without you here. It doesn't feel like home," Gladio added. 

Prompto cried again, but this time, because of an outpour of relief and exhaustion. He felt drained to have spoken about the grotto. But in the end, everyone had come to understand him a little better. And... he thought wearily, as he laid back down to rest... he felt closer to peace than he ever thought he could while stuck in the Arachne's web. 


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> thanks for all the comments so far, I love getting them! have some more Arachne, on the house

The Arachne scuttled across the unfamiliar, hot socks. The sun had set only moments before, and she continued down the road she'd last caught trace of her slave leave.

Her pet had interacted with some faintly familiar scents - the trespassers he'd been with - and got into one of those lothesome cars near her grotto. But the car had a distinct, polished scent about it. Strong and traceable. She'd been following it night after night, hiding during the day. She planned on finding her slave and teaching him a painful lesson about obedience. She rather enjoyed keeping him in her chambers and didn't want to let that go. 

But the farther she followed the disintegrating scent, the hotter the environment become. She became weaker if she didn't eat. She struggled at first, but found using her web at night could gather large, exotic daytime mammals. She started to treat her journey like a tourist might, trying to enjoy the landscape at night as she fantasized about what she'd do the human. Because the night she caught a pack of sharp-teeth hounds in her web, she found a little harsh-smelling human hovel with her pet's scent fresh all around it. She feasted eagerly that night, enjoying her time and letting the sun rise. The trespassers were here too. 

Based on the smell, her human had been with them for weeks. She had no reason think he'd leave just yet. 

The Arachne watched them for days from afar. She set up camp in the giant mountain a few miles from the road. It provided pockets and holes for her to slip herself into during the day. She had lots to eat at night, and made a web for herself inside the branches of a tree growing halfway off the rock. At night, she'd watch from the other side of the road, and sometimes see her human with the others in the white den. It would be eating and laughing - looking very much like all her hard work had been chipped away. 

She had seen what the dark-haired one could do. She knew provoking them all at once was a bad idea; she didn't want to end up like half the grotto had. Yet each night, they all went to sleep, tucked in their hovels with those damn, burning lights above them. 

So she waited patiently, watching each night for an oppurtunity. Watching and waiting. Watching and waiting. 

***

"Prompto, be a doll and get me that wrench right there," Cindy asked, reaching out without looking up from the trunk of an old wagon she needed to fix. "I don't think this is gonna be as quick as I thought."

"I don't mind," Prompto grinned, handing over the tool as Cindy withdrew from her work. 

Cindy looked at the wrench, then set it aside. "On second thought, let's both you and me take a break, hon. I'm gettin' cross-eyed from staring at that engine too long."

"Drinks?" Prompto asked. 

"Anything to get the taste of oil off my tongue," she laughed, leading the way to Takka's. 

Prompto got a tea, and Cindy got a soda. Cor was already sitting at the counter, drinking a coffee and sporting a headache. Prompto hadn't told him much about the details of the arachne. Not like he'd been sharing with Ignis, Gladio and Noctis every now and then. Cor didn't need to know. And the man didn't want to. He seemed content to know that Prompto was recovering. He'd still yet to find another lead on any arms, nor heard anything back from the boats to Altissia. Everything had gone into a bit of a lock down the last three weeks since they'd come here. Cor was begining to worry that they'd have to stay even longer.

"How you feeling, Prompto?" Cor asked. 

"Better than you look. Did you not sleep good?"

"No, it's just that daemon activity had been getting worse the last several nights." Cor explained. 

Prompto nodded. Noctis had already told him, and he had freaked out a little. Daemons were something he never wanted to think about again, let alone fight. Cindy had installed brighter lights a year ago, but Cor figured they needed to get new ones sooner. 

"I'm thinking of going to Lestallum and getting some fixtures," Cor said. 

"Really? Bored of old little Hammerhead already?" Cindy teased. 

"Well, it's not a lie if you say it," Cor said, taking a sip. "But I do think it'd be best. I have enough gil on me, and then some, to get what we need."

"That ain't a bad idea," Cindy admitted. "You can take PawPaw's pick-up."

"Should we go?" Prompto asked. 

"No. I want to take this chance to check the city out too, see how much a grip the empire has on it. They might be screening for the prince now. We can't chance it."

Prompto readily agreed. No chances.

"I should go now if I want to make it back before dark," Cor sighed. "And don't let me hear Noctis whining if he's upset he can't come."

Noctis didn't really care. So long as he didn't have to help put up the light fixtures. Cindy laughed, calling him a lazy bum as she explained that she was the one who did the hard work around here. Noctis agreed, and went to take another nap upstairs.

Prompto went with him, finding that he liked sleeping during the day more than at night. Night found him waking up, scared and sweating a lot of the times. During the day, he opened the attic window and listened to the activity of everyone below; the birds, the bellows of dual horns or cries of sabretusks. The two became nap buddies, in a sense, but even Gladio didn't tease them about it like he might have. 

"Ah~" Prompto said, slumping into his pillow. "Tired?"

"Mmmm," Noct said into his pillow. 

Prompto, whereas he might have initiated conversation before, rolled over and closed his eyes. Noct had opened up to him a lot in the last few days too. Especially about the daemon that killed his caretaker and left him with his bad leg. Noctis admitted to having nightmares, and of feeling dread within himself, as if he'd somehow been infected during the attack. But Regis never took these worries too seriously. Yet Noctis sometimes saw carbuncle in his dreams, protecting him from what he believes is the starscourge. 

Prompto took his worries seriously, and started to notice little things about the prince he'd always overlook. It made sense to him, his physical body being so in tune with his use of magic. Noctis was the prophesized king. Prompto wondered if he'd been stronger right now, during the time of his quest, had a daemon not struck him so young. 

Trying to sleep, Prompto listened to the wind outside. It was picking up today, made the sun feel a bit chilly. It was nice to bundle up and get cozy, he thought. But...

Something was nagging at him. Something felt wrong. He'd been having the strangest sense of fear randomly it seemed, since last week. The same feeling he got when he was up in the cocoon. When he was blind and mute, and all the sounds were muffled. He'd hear nothing, but feel her down there. Feel her watching, being quiet and observing. It sent him into a cold sweat. He was never wrong when he felt her stare. 

Then why was he getting the sweats again?

Prompto frowned. He rolled back over to maybe talk to Noctis, but found him already dead asleep. He shrugged. It was probably nothing, but caution got the better of him and he decided to ask Cor to check the area when he got back. Just to be safe. The man could tell if there was any Arachne out here - which was a silly thing to think anyway.

He went to sleep, unsure. 


	12. Chapter 12

Cor was going to be late. He cursed as the truck gave a lurch and he was forced to pull over onto the side of the road. The tires seemed to stick as he came to a roll. Cor shut off the ignition and glanced up at the sky. The sun was up for another forty minutes or so, maybe more. He was almost to Hammerhead. Cursing his luck, he hopped out and was surprised to find something white stuck all over the tires. 

He immediately withdrew his gun from his belt, eyes shifting around the open expanse of rock and dirt. Besides a few boulders, there was nothing but him. The only thing that could make webs that big and that thick were... arachnes. 

He got a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach and hopped in the car, locking it and shutting the door. He took out his phone, but before he could dial Ignis' number, something smashed into the driver's window. Cor dropped the phone. Something latched onto the front of his shirt and he reached for his knife as he was drug out into the open. It _was_ an arachne. Cor lifted the knife and plummeted it into its chest a few times. Its important organs were in its thorax, but he got it to release him. Cor fell deftly around its legs and took a jab at the soft underbelly before rolling under the pick up to avoid its furious blows. He rolled out from the other side and started sprinting down the street. The arachne tossed the truck on its side and pursued him. 

"Fucking Ifrit's ball-sack," Cor muttered, focusing on outrunning the thing. "That better not be Prompto's spider."

He was yanked from his ankles by a web. Cor rolled over and cut at it, but he was unable to do much. It was thick and hard as wool. The Arachne laughed and started to drag him towards it. Cor lifted his knife, aimed, and threw. It spun directly into the middle of its forehead. The Arachne went limp for a moment, its whole body plummeting into the ground. Cor breathed heavily as he sat up and tried to remove the webbing. The Arachne's slumped human top looked dead. But then it twitched, and started to breathe again. Its hands extended, and a furious scream brought the thing back to life. 

"Fuck."

Cor hated daemons. He readied his fists - the last weapons he had on him. 

***

Cor never returned to Hammerhead. It was a little past sundown and Gladio was ready to head down the road with the regalia and search for him. Ignis worried about the likely hood of daemons. Gladio told him that Cor was probably blind sided by them and needed their help. 

Prompto watched from up in the attic and Noctis broke in the middle of their arguing and asked Ignis to try calling him one more time. Gladio got angry at them stalling for time. Prompto closed the window and sat back down. They thought he was still sleeping, so he made sure to creep quietly downstairs into the garage, unsure what they should do. He worried about Cor, but the man was better in battle than even Noctis. But he also knew Cor wouldn't not contact them if he could help it. 

And all the while, he felt a cold sweat on his back. He left the garage and told himself not to think about it. He didn't want to bring up that nasty topic while everyone was worried about Cor. He jogged over just as Gladio was making his way past. 

"Are you going to find, Cor?" Prompto asked. 

"I'm sorry, but I'm not waiting around." Gladio said without turning back. "We're not leaving him behind."

Prompto heard an edge to his voice. He knew where it was coming from and felt compelled to follow. 

"Hey wait, I should come with," Prompto said. 

That made Gladio stopped, and he looked Prom up and down. "You sure you're up for that?"

Prompto nodded. He'd been on a few hunts since his episode. Just bullets, no swords or tearing the damn animal in half, but he had yet to be in a battle. Still, there was no guarantee of one, and he couldn't help but want to prove himself. He felt strong enough. 

"I'm sure."

"Then let's go. Ignis, Noct! Don't wait up for us!"

"What?" Noctis flashed towards them, hopping into existence between them and the regalia. "You're going with him?"

"I don't want to leave Cor alone. Just to be safe," Prompto explained simply. 

"Fine," Noct turned and started for the car. "Iggy! You driving?"

Gladio and Prompto exchanged looked as Ignis pushed between them, taking the keys from Gladio's hand. 

"Thank you, and yes. I will. Might as well bring Cor back with minimal damage."

Prompto hopped in the back, as Ignis turned on the bright headlights and took off down the road. It didn't take long for them to find an over-turned pick up. Prompto noticed the glitter of broken glass on the driver's side and Gladio ran over to investigate. Everyone else summoned their weapons, looking around the darkness with only the regalia's light on them. Prompto's gun was heavy in his hand as he backed up next to Ignis. 

"Hey, Ignis, do you see anything that might tell us where Cor is?"

But Iggy was already searching the ground, trailing off towards the edge of the light. "It looks like the dirt's been disrupted here, but I don't see any footprints. There are fresh gashes here, but, those could from a dual horn scrap for all we know. Gladio, anything?"

"His phone," came the glum reply. Noct warped over to them, looking sick. "It looked like he tried to call you, Specs. Something must have jumped him."

"Uh, guys?" Gladio called. They all turned to look at him. The shield was staring at the pick up tires. "What does this look like?"

Prompto walked over, curiously leaning in as he realized that the back tires had been coated in paint or something. No. Not paint. His eyes widened when he realized that it was webbing. His chest went cold. 

"That's web," he stated. "What the fuck? Is that webbing?"

"It could be anything," Noctis said. "Let's not jump to conclusions."

"An Arachne stopped him?" Prompto continued. "We have to find him. We have to," he trailed off, looking around through the dark. "What would an Arachne be doing out here?"

That was a good question. Prompto felt a cold sweat again. Maybe Noctis felt it too. 

"We should stay in the light," the prince said, reaching out to draw Prompto closer. 

Prompto heard the ' _thwip_ ' of the web. He'd heard it so many time in the grotto, it was unmistakable. His body moved for him, throwing himself forward and into Noctis. He bowled them both over. Prompto spun around, seeing the spider thread that had shot from the dark and stick to where he'd been standing. Ignis jumped back from it, and Gladio summoned his broadsword as he stepped in front of everyone. 

"Come on out, you freak!" He shouted. Another web shot out and plunked against his sword. Gladio spun, cutting into it and ripping it into shreds. He threw his sword in the direction of the web, summoning a smaller, silver sword as he ran forward towards a furious shriek. 

"Gotcha!" He screamed, disappearing into the dark. 

"Galdio!" Prompto ran forward, but Noct grabbed his shoulder and held him back. 

"No! Go wait in the car," Noct said. Prompto made to argue but was surprised by the intensity in Noct's voice. "That's the Arachne that took you, isn't it?"

Prompto gulped. "We can't be sure-"

"It's trapped us here. Get in the car, Ignis, go with him." Noctis warped forward, not waiting a reply. "Protect him!" 

"Damn it, Noctis!" Ignis shouted. "You can't just run off- oh, nevermind. Prompto, get in the car."

He kept his gun up, legs jittery and heart thumping. He couldn't be sure. He didn't want to be sure, but... was it really her? 

"No, I can fight! We've done this plenty of times in the dark, right?" He began to approach the dark but Ignis stopped him. He took his by the shoulder, towards the headlights as they heard clashing beyond them. A silhouette of Noctis and Gladio and a giant Arachne flashed through the night, and Prompto's heart catch in his throat. He let Ignis rush him towards the regalia and shove him in the passenger side. 

"Stay here, I'm going to give them a little light," Ignis said, tossing Prompto the keys and lighting up his hand with a small fireball. "Keep your gun handy, and the lights on. I'm going to try and push the daemon there."

He shut the door, leaving a fear-stricken Prompto fumbling to put the key in the ignition. Lights would stay on, he thought, everyone would get in... Cor. Where would Cor be? he thought. A blast of fire lit up the Arachne and Prompto could clearly see her face. He recoiled, feeling sick and locking the door. Shiva, it was really her. He crawled into the backseat like a scared child, heart pounding and feeling incredibly small. 

"Damn it, damn it, why is she here?!" he screamed. But he already knew; she was here for him. 

He felt disgusted that she'd been able to track him, let alone that she trapped them all here. 

Prompto screamed when the back door seat opened. 

"It's only me! It's Noctis!" 

"Noct? Where is she? Is she dead?"

The prince scooted in. Gladio was suddenly coming in from the other side, and Ignis was climbing into the driver's seat. 

"No, it disappeared. The damn thing just ran off." Noct hissed. "I almost had it too!"

"We can talk about it when we're safe," Ignis snapped, turning the car off the road and staring to quickly towards Hammerhead. "We're too far out here with, Prompto. We need to get him under the safety of the lights, first and foremost."

"How did she find me?!" Prompto finally shouted. "Don't daemons stay in their lairs?!" 

"We'll hunt it down," Gladio reassured him. 

"It must been watching us to know-" Ignis cut himself off and the car came to a jerking halt.

The Arachne had threw herself in front of the headlights, arms burning as she shielded herself with Cor's webbed up body. She scuttled away from the lights, holding him lower and putting a hand to his throat. Noctis was halfway out of the car when she spoke. 

"Take another step and I rip his head off," the daemon spat.

Noctis' weapon stilled in his hand, but didn't disappear. Gladio and Ignis had gotten out as well. Prompto felt too much terror to even touch the car handle. He watched from behind the window, feeling his heart stop as her sharp eyes gazed right through to him. He backed away, even though he knew she couldn't be able to see past the tinted, black glass. 

"Let him go, and I'll make your death quick," Noctis declared. Ignis reigned in a half distressed, half disappointed sigh. 

"I'm not letting this meatbag go until I get to see my pet," the Arachne sneered. She looked the prince up and down, unimpressed.

Noctis' face flared red. "He's not your fucking pet!" 

Cor mumbled something behind his gag, as the Arachne squeezed his throat. Beads of blood dribbled down to his shirt. 

"Calm down, Noctis," Ignis hissed. 

"Yes, calm down, little human," the daemon agreed. "I only want to talk. But keep insulting me and I'll leave you with one less companion."

"You're not hurting Prompto," Noctis said. 

"Is that his name?" She laughed, putting a free hand to her chest. The bloody trail from her knife wound had dried between her eyes, cracking with her expression. "Prompto? Why don't you come out, Prompto and let me see that pretty face? Or I can kill this human, if you prefer."

The door clicked. Noctis stared down the Arachne, furious, and took a step in front of the gunman as he ducked into the open. He tried to stand tall, but seeing the Arachne tower over him was waking his knees weak. 

"My, my," the Arachne said. "You look as lively as the day I found you."

Prompto tried to keep her gaze, but found it hard. Seeing Cor in her grasp made it easier to fight down the fear, though. This wasn't about him, he thought. He had to get Cor out of this. He winced as he spotted the oozing blood. 

"And you look, uh, nice too," he stuttered, worried about making her angry. 

She laughed again. "Oh, it's so nice to have you back again. I was so angry when I saw your cocoon empty," she choked Cor a little harder and held him up, her face twisted in anger. "I was furious. And I still am, but your can dampen that rage if you come over here like a good little cunt-slave and trade yourself for your friend."

Prompto flushed at the sexual title. He saw Noct look at him from his peripheral, then back at the Arachne. Noct's upper lip twitched. He bared his teeth, but then jerked away from the daemon as if physically trying to reing himself back from attacking. 

"Get in the car, Prompto," Noctis said instead. "We'll take care of this."

"He's not going anywhere," the Arachne said. "Tell them what I told you," she hissed, tearing away the webbing from Cor's mouth. 

He gasped as he took a breath, but looked more uncomfortable than anything else. "Fuck what you say. Noct, kill this thing! That's an order!" 

A sword lanced through where the Arachne's head had been, but she dodged it just in time, loosing her grip on Cor as he fell to the dirt. Noct had taken the opening, and was now lashing down on the defending Arachne with nearly all his armiger. Ignis caught Cor and was leading him to safety. The poor man had been bound by his arms and legs, so there was no way he'd be any help for the rest of the night. Prompto still had his gun, but didn't raise it. He was startled as Gladio charged from over the regalia's hood and jumped at the Arachne's legs and spider body. Prompto couldn't aim right. His hands were shaking too much and he was afraid to hit a human body.

He ran over to help Ignis with Cor.

"Hurry, let's get him in the back," Ignis said, hefting him up by the shoulders.

Prompto grabbed his legs, and the two of them hurried him over the backseats. Prompto had to step over him, apologizing frantically. 

"Sorry, Cor, sorry. It's really strong, but Gladio can cut through it," he said. 

"Stay in the back!" Ignis shouted. "I'm going to get the others in here and we're escaping."

The door slammed shut. Prompto sunk down to the car floor and helped Cor remove more webbing from his face. 

"Sorry, ah, it's really sticky."

"I'm fine. I wish I wasn't tied up. What's going on out there?"

Prompto peeked through the window, but he didn't see them outside. It was too dark. 

"I don't know. I can hear them, but I don't see anything." He crouched back down. "Did she hurt you?"

"No. Just a few punches. It was asking about you, so I spit in its face," Cor grinned. Prompto looked less amused. "It didn't hurt me, really. I'm fine."

"Well, I'll be your last line of defense, so don't act to happy yet," Prompto sighed. "Man, I hate feeling trapped."

They quieted, listening for the sounds of battle. Prompto wasn't sure if he could hear it or not. Then the car door opened behind him and he turned around, expecting to find Noct telling him to move over. He screamed as the Arachne's grinned a fang-filled smile and snagged him from the car. Cor screamed the gunman's name, but could only lay and struggle as the daemon fled into the night with her prize. 


	13. Chapter 13

Prompto couldn't fathom how he ended back up in the Arachne's arms. She was gripping him tightly, clinging to him as the heavy bounding of her gait jostled the poor gunman around. He reached out and blindly started to claw at her wrists. He hadn't de-summoned his gun. It must have fallen in the car and he had no way of calling it to him. 

"Let go of me! Fuck off!" He flailed and the Arachne caught both his wrists, wrapping them together with some web. 

"Stay quiet for me, just for now," she purred, fingers tracing a line of silk across his lips.

She tossed him down to her spider legs. They caught him, holding him flush against the underside of her thorax, as she hide behind a boulder and caught her breath. Her sharp eyes scanned the valley. She was looking for an escape. Prompto tried to scream through his gag to alert the others, but she gave him a painful squeeze with her pincers. 

"I said to be quiet. You can scream as loud as you'd like when we get home," she promised darkly. 

_'Home?! I'm already home!'_

There was a blast beside them. A burst of blue diamonds as Noct's giant shuriken plowed through the dirt. Noct appeared on top of it, glaring bolts into the daemon, disappearing and warping above her head with a huge sword. He swept it down and the daemon dodged, backing away from the boulder and into the open. Noct kept pushing her back, swinging and growling and demanding she let his friend go. 

"I'm not gonna ask again!" Noctis shouted, a newly-summoned lance leaving a gash in the spider's side. "Let him go!" 

Prompto heard Gladio before he saw him. The man slid like a baseball player beneath the Arachne's thrashing legs, cutting all left of them and crippling the creature. She howled and titled, allowing Gladio the chance to wretch Prompto from her belly and roll away to safety. The Arachne screamed again. 

"How dare you!?" She roared, picking herself back up.

Noctis slammed into her again, and again. She rolled back down, black blood oozing from several wounds. Her legs scrambled as she hefted her thorax off the ground. Noctis drove an axe onto her front mantel, the ornate design of her body crumpling with the tear of skin and bone. She latched onto the handle of his weapon and flung him upward, barreling a powerful arm into his chest and sending Noctis quite literally tumbling through the air. He crashed somewhere in the dark, Gladio picking up the slack as he aimed for her already damaged left side.

She spun, clipping both of them with a back leg, and backing away like a cornered animal. And then Noctis was floating before her face, armiger swirling around her before the entirety of the arsenal torpedoed into her face. The daemon flew back with a gush of black and the squelching of meat and bone. Prompto couldn't look away from her now mangled face, the huge being slumping over as if dead.

Was... was she really dead?

Prompto kept staring at the corpse, unable to disconnect himself from it. Ignis propped him up and tried to shield him away, taking his wrists and summoning a dagger to work furiously at the bindings. Prompto felt the snap of the web, but he didn't look away from her. From the Arachne that had made his life a living hell for nine days. The creature that had followed him all the way out here with the intent to drag him back to her icy torture. 

"Prompto?" Ignis asked. 

His eyes flashed away from the corpse as Noctis stepped into his line of sight, walking over to them with Gladio following. Prompto began to panic, hiding his face behind his hands. 

"Cor-" he mumbled to Ignis. "Untie him, please."

"Oh, of course," Ignis let go of Prompto gently, easing both them up as he went to the backseat of the regalia. 

"Prompto, are you okay?" Noctis knelt before him, and Prom couldn't look up to meet his eyes. "Prompto, please. Talk to me. I was so scared I'd lost you again."

But all Prompto could think was; 'You heard her call me _that name._ ' A name that left little to one's imagination about its implications. He felt shame leave him hot and red. Tears started to burn. He wasn't ready to talk about this. 

"You're safe, Prom. That's all that matters. You're safe, and I'm not abandoning you."

Noctis gingerly reached his hands out, letting them lay flat on the rocks before Prompto's knees. Prompto sniffled, slowly slotting his own hands over Noctis and leaning closer. Prompto nodded, tears now fully blinding him. He wasn't sure how long it'd take for him to open up about the sexual abuse. He wasn't sure if he'd ever be able to. Seeing the Arachne die in front of him, hearing her voice again, all of it felt like he'd been shoved back several steps in the progress he and Noct made.

"You're my family," Noctis continued. "We'll work through this together. At your own pace."

That terrified, yet determined voice grounded him. 

He kept his hands where they were, holding onto his words and the promise there. He was going to be okay as long as he had Noctis. And hearing Cor curse as Ignis ripped away the sticky webbing, Gladio trying to help and earning only insults, Prompto knew he had more than just the prince. 

He was going to be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaaand, that's all folks! For real though, thanks for all the support! I want to keep writing, but am low on ideas. If you have any plot bunnies for FFXV, let me know in the comments. If I see something I like, I'll write it and give you credit!


End file.
